Department for Transport

Bus Services: Disability

Rosie Duffield: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the timeframe is for the roll-out of buses with audio visual (a) next stop IIand (b) final destination announcements in (i) Kent and (b) Canterbury.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: In summer 2018 the Government consulted publicly on plans to use powers in the Bus Services Act 2017 to make Regulations requiring the provision of audible and visible information onboard local bus services across Great Britain. We continue to analyse responses to the consultation and expect to announce our next steps regarding the making of Regulations and publication of guidance later in the year.

Ferries: Scotland

David Duguid: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what his Department's policy is on securing ferry space for exports of (a) Scottish seafood and (b) other perishable or time-sensitive goods in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal.

Chris Grayling: The Government-secured freight capacity is intended to support the supply of Category 1 goods which are currently reliant on the Short Straits. A list of types of goods in this category has been published at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/critical-goods-for-government-secured-freight-capacity.

Railways: Freight

Sir Nicholas Soames: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of increased freight travel by rail on climate change.

Andrew Jones: Government recognises the environmental benefits of rail freight and we are committed to supporting the long-term growth of the rail freight industry. Government’s Rail Freight Strategy, published in September 2016, sets out a shared vision for how rail freight can increase its share of the freight market, and encourage modal shift from road to rail. As part of this strategy, Arup were commissioned to assess the potential to reduce carbon emissions through greater modal shift from road to rail. In response to the Government’s ambition to improve the carbon performance of the railway, the Rail and Safety Standards Board is undertaking a research project examining the options for decarbonising rail freight. The result of this research will inform future policy decisions in this area. Government is also working with industry to produce up-to-date emissions data from freight locomotives, so that we can better understand the environmental impact of rail freight.

Aircraft: Accidents

Mr Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with representatives from the private commercial aviation industry on the issue of grey charters as a result of the Piper PA-46 Malibu crash on 21 January 2019.

Jesse Norman: The Aviation Minister held discussions with the Chief Executive of the British Air Charter Associations on the issue of illegal public transport on 3 April 2019.The Air Accident Investigation Branch’s Special Bulletin of 25 February 2019 states: “The investigation is considering the regulations applicable to the operation of this flight including airworthiness requirements; flight crew licencing; and the carriage of passengers. The basis on which the passenger was being carried on N264DB has not yet been established.”

Aircraft: Accidents

Mr Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with representatives from the Civil Aviation Authority on the Piper PA-46 Malibu crash of 21 January 2019.

Jesse Norman: The Aviation Minister has discussed this issue with the Chief Executive of the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), and the Department for Transport remains in regular contact with the Civil Aviation Authority on this issue.

Aircraft: Accidents

Mr Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with the representatives of the football industry since the Piper PA-46 Malibu crash of 21 January 2019.

Jesse Norman: No such discussions have taken place at this time.

Aircraft: Accidents

Mr Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to reform the issue of grey charters as a result of the Piper PA-46 Malibu crash of 21 January 2019.

Jesse Norman: The Air Accident Investigation Branch (AAIB)’s investigation into the Piper PA-46 Malibu crash of 21 January 2019 is under way, and the Government will consider any recommendations the investigation makes in due course. There are already strict rules in place that require commercial air transport operations to be operated by the holder of an Air Operator Certificate (AOC). All UK AOC holders are overseen by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) and are subject to appropriate high-level safety rules. The CAA does, and will investigate allegations of illegal public transport. The CAA will prosecute people where there is sufficient evidence, and where it is in the public interest to do so. It is illegal to operate a commercial air transport flight without an AOC. The CAA conducts spot check visits to airfields and public events where aeroplane and helicopter operations take place, and where it finds evidence that a flight may have operated illegally it has the power to detain an aircraft and, where appropriate, take enforcement action. The CAA has previously conducted awareness campaigns with the aim of raising awareness of the dangers of illegal operations, and of what to look for when chartering an aircraft to ensure the flight is legal. The CAA expects to initiate a further campaign of this type shortly.

Railway Stations: Disability

Nicky Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which railway stations were considered for Access for All funding in Control Period 6 but were not successful.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: The Department for Transport asked the industry to nominate stations for the new funding by 16 November last year, and received nominations for over 300 stations. In the Loughborough constituency, Loughborough Station was nominated unsuccessfully as it was made step-free under Access for All in 2011/12. Neither Barrow-Upon-Soar nor Sileby Stations were nominated. In total 73 stations are set to benefit from this funding by 2024. This is in addition to the 24 Access for All projects that are currently in design or construction.

Aviation: Football

Mr Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what reports he has received on football agents and intermediaries brokering illegal private flights to fly themselves, clients or related parties on a commercial basis; and if he will make a statement.

Jesse Norman: As the Air Accident Investigation Branch are conducting a live investigation into the Piper PA-46 Malibu crash of 21 January 2019, it would not be appropriate for the Government to share details of any reports it may or may not have received.The Air Accident Investigation Branch’s Special Bulletin of 25 February 2019 states: “The investigation is considering the regulations applicable to the operation of this flight including airworthiness requirements; flight crew licencing; and the carriage of passengers.The basis on which the passenger was being carried on N264DB has not yet been established.” The Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) consistently monitor and investigate any reports they receive on illegal private flights they receive. The CAA does, and will investigate allegations of illegal public transport. The CAA will prosecute people where there is sufficient evidence, and where it is in the public interest to do so.

East-West Rail Link

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if he will make an assessment of what account Highways England have taken of the requirement in the National Planning Policy Framework to consider compensation for significant harm to biodiversity as a last resort and not the default choice in selecting the preferred corridor for the Oxford-Cambridge Expressway.

Jesse Norman: The Oxford Cambridge Expressway, as a Nationally Significant Infrastructure Project, falls under the provisions of the relevant National Policy Statement (NPS) rather than the National Planning Policy Framework. The Government will ensure that all assessments required under the National Networks NPS are undertaken at the appropriate stage.

Rescue Services: Ceredigion

Ben Lake: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many Coastguard Rescue Officers are available for service in each Coastguard station along the Ceredigion coast; and what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of those numbers.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: There are six Coastguard Rescue Teams (CRTs) along the Ceredigion coast with 45 volunteer Coastguard Rescue Officers (CROs) currently available for service. The number in each team is shown below: Location of CRTCROs availableCardigan8Gwbert3New Quay8Aberystwyth9Borth8Aberdyfi9 Her Majesty’s Coastguard continually monitors the number of available CROs. They are all volunteers and as such there is no mutuality of obligation so their availability can vary throughout any specified period. During an incident the Search Mission Co-ordinator monitors the response levels and if further CROs are required to attend the incident then they will task the flank CRTs.

Railways: Tickets

Martin Vickers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many amendments his Department has made to the rail ticketing and settlement agreement since the establishment of that scheme.

Martin Vickers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent assessment he has made of the effectiveness of the rail ticketing and settlement agreement, and if he will make a statement.

Martin Vickers: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, whether he has plans to reform the rail ticketing and settlement agreement to enable a more (a) transparent, (b) innovative and (c) simpler fares and ticketing system.

Andrew Jones: The Ticketing and Settlement Agreement (TSA) is maintained and managed by the Rail Delivery Group (RDG) on behalf of the train operators. It is for the industry to propose changes to the TSA, and for Secretary of State to approve those changes where he is required to do so. The RDG has submitted to the Williams Rail Review its proposals for reform of the fares system, including reform of the TSA, and we are ready to work with the industry to consider how its proposals might work and be tested in the real world.

Railways: Bescot

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate Network Rail has made of the business rates that will be payable to Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council in the event that planning consent is granted for a new sleeper factory at Bescot Rail Yard.

Andrew Jones: A proposal for a new facility in Bescot is being developed by Network Rail to produce the sleepers necessary for them to maintain, renew, and enhance our rail network. The facility is intended to make up the shortfall when an existing facility at Washwood Heath is closed to become an HS2 depot. Network Rail estimates that the proposed development will generate approximately £300,000 in annual business rates revenue payable to Sandwell Borough Council.

Railways: Bescot

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, which sites were identified by Network Rail as its (a) second and (b) third choice preference for a new sleeper factory following the selection of Bescot Rail Yard as its preferred site; for what reasons those two sites were rejected; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Jones: A proposal for a new facility in Bescot is being developed by Network Rail to produce the sleepers necessary for them to maintain, renew, and enhance our rail network. The facility is intended to make up the shortfall when an existing facility at Washwood Heath is closed to become an HS2 depot. There were originally six sites identified as potential locations for a new sleeper factory. Following a comprehensive review, Bescot Down in Sandwell and Kingmoor Depot in Carlisle were shortlisted for final consideration. Kingmoor was subsequently discounted for a variety of reasons, including: a number of potentially significant environmental constraints such as land contamination; being located adjacent to several designated heritage assets as well as being within a world heritage site – significantly increasing development costs and reducing viability; and its geographical location in the north-west of England posing logistical challenges for transporting sleepers to projects based around the entire network. I have no plans to make a statement about the proposed facility.

Railway Stations: Disability

Ruth George: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what the timescale is for groups to apply for the Mid-Tier Access for All programme.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: We have made £20m available for Mid-Tier Access for All projects. Details of how this funding will be allocated are being finalised now and we intend to open the nomination process later this summer.

Members: Correspondence

Clive Efford: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, when the investigation into the Subject Access Request submitted by a constituent and referred to in the letter of the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State of 14 November on Movecom Limited will be completed.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: An internal review, or investigation, into our response to your constituent’s Freedom of Information (FOI) request was completed on 8 November 2018. All aspects of the subject access element of your constituent’s request were also completed last year.

Shipping: Equality

Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 5 April 2019 to Question 239228 on Shipping: Equality, whether he has received the further quality evidence from the shipping industry.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: We have considered oral evidence received as part of wider discussions and input from the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers (RMT). We have also received external statistical evidence. However, there remains a lack of robust evidence and this will be highlighted in the Post-Implementation Review.

Shipping: Equality

Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport,  pursuant to the Answer of 5 April 2019 to Question 239228 on Shipping: Equality, whether his Department was consulted over the statement from the four statutory bodies for human rights and equality in June 2018; and what input his Department had on that statement.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: The Department for Transport was not consulted on this statement and did not make any input into it. All four statutory bodies are independent, and exist to advise and advocate on equality and human rights issues. As such, the government does not seek to influence the development of their statements.

Shipping: Equality

Karl Turner: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 5 April 2019 to Question 239228 on Shipping: Equality, by what date he expects the final Post Implementation Review to be presented to the Reducing Regulation Committee.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: It is anticipated that the Post Implementation Review will be presented to the Reducing Regulation Committee before summer recess 2019.

Parking: Pedestrian Areas

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, pursuant to the Answer of 8 March 2019 to Question 227145 on Parking: pedestrian areas, by what date his Department plans to (a) publish the findings of the review into pavement parking which began in summer 2018 and (b) bring forward legislative proposals as a result of that review.

Jesse Norman: The Department for Transport is currently considering the findings of its internal review on the issue of pavement parking, and will be announcing a decision in the coming months.

Parking: Pedestrian Areas

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions his Department has held with stakeholder organisations on pavement parking.

Jesse Norman: Over the last year, the Department for Transport has discussed the issue of pavement parking with a range of stakeholder organisations, including Guide Dogs, Living Streets, RNIB, the Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee, the Local Government Association, the British Parking Association, PATROL, the Traffic Penalty Tribunal, London Councils, Transport Scotland, the AA, the RAC, the RAC Foundation, local authority parking managers, disabled people, independent experts on parking and traffic policy, and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government.

Tyne and Wear Metro

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer on the allocation of additional funding for the Tyne and Wear Metro to enable it to (a) continue to operate and (b) continue with infrastructure renewal after the current funding arrangement ends; and if he will make a statement.

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the grant funding that will be allocated to the Tyne and Wear Passenger Transport Executive in each year up to 2025; and if he will make a statement.

Jesse Norman: In the 2017 Autumn Budget, the Chancellor announced a £337m direct grant to deliver a new fleet of trains for the Tyne and Wear Metro.Nexus also currently receive a £250,000 Rail Administration Grant and £400,000 for the Sunderland Decrement Payment on an annual basis.Any further funding would be a matter for the forthcoming cross-government Spending Review, conducted by HM Treasury. This applies to all similar grant applications across the country.

Traffic Lights: Batteries

Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of the use of non-compliant batteries in traffic lights; and if he will make a statement.

Jesse Norman: Batteries are commonly used to power portable traffic lights of the type used at roadworks. The type of battery is not specified in regulation or guidance. The technical specification covering portable signal equipment covers power outputs but does not specify battery type. Local traffic authorities are responsible for approving roadworks, including use of portable traffic lights. It is for those deploying portable traffic lights to ensure that the equipment is safe and fit for purpose.

Cycling

Derek Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to encourage cyclists to avoid using main roads in areas where cycle-specific infrastructure is available.

Jesse Norman: Cycle lanes, where provided, can offer cyclists a safer alternative to cycling in the main carriageway. It is not compulsory for cyclists to use them, and the Government has no plans to change this.

Driving: Licensing

Justin Madders: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many holders of UK driving licences with 12 points or more on their licence have been allowed to continue driving in each of the last three years.

Jesse Norman: The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency holds current data on the number of people with 12 penalty points or more on their driving record. On 9 April 2019 the number of people with 12 penalty points or more who have entitlement to drive is 11,105.Some of these drivers will have already served a disqualification which expired before the penalty points attributed to the offence(s).Some will be drivers who had cited ‘exceptional hardship’ to the court after they had reached 12 penalty points under the ‘totting-up’ provisions. In these circumstances the disqualification may either be avoided or significantly reduced.The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency is the holder of the record of all GB fixed penalties and court ordered endorsements, but is not responsible for setting them or influencing court imposed sentences.

Railways: Bus Services

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many rail replacement bus services were utilised in (a) 2010, (b) 2017 and (c) 2018.

Andrew Jones: The department does not hold this information.

Railways: Bus Services

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what estimate he has made of the number of rail replacement bus services on rail service standards; and what assessment he has made of the effect of those services on the rail user experience.

Andrew Jones: The Department continually monitors the rail user experience, including passengers’ satisfaction with rail services. We set a range of challenging satisfaction targets for operators in Franchise Agreements, including on how delays are handled, and if these targets are missed, operators must invest in improvements. We expect train companies to manage periods of disruption in a way that minimises the impact on passengers and maintains a high quality service.

Railways: Freight

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what recent steps his Department has taken to increase the use of rail for freight.

Andrew Jones: Government recognises the economic and environmental benefits of rail freight and is committed to transporting more goods by rail. The Government has published a Rail Freight Strategy to provide a stable policy framework to enable rail freight to grow and achieve its potential to unlock these benefits. Transporting more goods by rail freight brings environmental and congestion benefits, and the Government is committed to working with the rail freight industry to support its continued success. To support future growth of the rail freight industry the Secretary of State also confirmed that Government intends to continue investment in improving the rail freight network in Control Period 6 (2019-2024) as part of their funding settlement.

Railways: Tickets

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps his Department taken to (a) simplify (b) encourage the purchase of split rail tickets.

Andrew Jones: Train operators are obliged to sell the most appropriate through fare based on the information the passenger gives them. We are aware that for some journeys it can be cheaper to purchase two or more tickets for individual parts of the route than a through ticket for the entire journey. Going forward, we are considering how best to reform the fares and ticketing system, removing complexity and perverse pricing.

Fratton Station: Staff

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many hours per week on average staff were available in person to assist customers at Fratton rail station in (a) 2010 and (b) 2018.

Andrew Jones: On average, at Fratton Station, staff were available to assist customers, on the platform for 154hrs per week, and in the booking office for 141hrs per week, in 2018. Data is unavailable for 2010.

Railway Stations: Hampshire

Stephen Morgan: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, how many railway station staff were employed to work at stations located in Hampshire in (a) 2010 and (b) 2018.

Andrew Jones: There were 280 staff employed at railway stations in Hampshire in 2010 and 304 in 2018, an increase of close to 10 per cent.

Level Crossings: Greenwich

Matthew Pennycook: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what discussions he has had with Network Rail on the proposed closure of the Angerstein pedestrian level crossing as a result of upgrade works.

Andrew Jones: The Secretary of State for Transport has not had any discussions with Network Rail on the proposed closure of Angerstein pedestrian level crossing. The management of level crossings on the UK rail network is an operational matter for Network Rail, who are the infrastructure managers of Britain’s railways.

East Coast Railway Line

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, if his Department will carry out an economic assessment of the value of the East Coast Main Line to the UK economy; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Jones: In 2017 Network Rail published their document “East Coast Main Line Route Study – Railway Investment Choices”. In respect of an economic assessment of the East Coast Main Line as a fast, high yield route connecting London with the North and Scotland, it was stated that a third of the UK population lives within 20 minutes of an ECML station; and together they produce 41% of the UK’s GDP (Source: Office of National Statistics Gross Value Added). A link to the Network Rail publication can be found herehttps://www.networkrail.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2017/12/East-Coast-Main-Line-Route-Study.pdf

East Coast Railway Line

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans his Department has to allocate funding to the East Coast Main Line in the Network Rail Control Periods CP6 and CP7; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Jones: The Prime Minister has announced Control Period 6 investment of up to £780m in the East Coast Main Line. This will fund power supply upgrades between Doncaster and Edinburgh, a new rail junction near Peterborough, a new platform at Stevenage Station and improvements to the track layout at King’s Cross Station. The Department is working with stakeholders, including Transport for the North, to identify and assess further potential enhancements for the East Coast Main Line. We will take staged decisions to progress further enhancements through the Rail Network Enhancement Pipeline process.

East Coast Railway Line

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps he is taking to improve infrastructure on the East Coast Main Line in preparation for the arrival of High Speed Two rolling stock; and if he will make a statement.

Ms Nusrat Ghani: HS2 Ltd is currently identifying the works that may be required to accommodate HS2 services on the Conventional Rail Network from 2033. The initial assessment of areas where HS2 Ltd may need to undertake work is set out in the WDES, and work is ongoing to confirm which works will be needed. The works required will be detailed in the Phase 2b hybrid Bill, alongside the environmental assessment in the formal Environmental Statement, when the Phase 2b scheme is deposited in Parliament next year. The Volume 4 of the WDES is available here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/745090/HS2_Phase_2b_Working_Draft_ES_Volume_4_Off-route_effects.pdf

East Coast Railway Line

Catherine McKinnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what plans he has to help improve (a) resilience, (b) capacity and (c) journey times on the East Coast Main Line between York and Newcastle; and if he will make a statement.

Andrew Jones: The Department is investing up to £780m in Control Period 6 to upgrade the East Coast Main Line. In conjunction with the introduction of new fleets of trains for both London North Eastern Railway and TransPenninne Express, this will improve capacity and journey times along the length of the Line. The Department continues to work with Transport for the North to identify and assess further potential enhancements between York and Newcastle. The Statement of Funds Available that was announced on 12 October 2017 focusses on the operation, maintenance and renewal of the railway to improve reliability. Network Rail’s Strategic Business Plan 2019 to 2024 for the London North Eastern and East Midlands Route explains how this investment will be used to improve the resilience of the East Coast Main Line.

A2: Garages and Petrol Stations

Adam Holloway: To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, for what reason the sale of Tollgate Hotel Watling Street Gravesend Kent DA13 9RA to BP Oil UK Limited has been delayed.

Jesse Norman: Highways England entered into a conditional contract with BP for the sale of Tollgate Hotel that was conditional on planning permission being granted for development. The planning applications submitted have been subject to a number of judicial reviews, which have delayed the sale. As a result, Highways England have now agreed with BP to move to an unconditional contract; this means the sale will no longer be dependent on gaining planning permission, and Highways England will now be able to move forward with the sale.Given that Highways England will be entering into a new unconditional contract with BP for the sale of the property, they have no plans to remarket it at this time.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy: Departmental Responsibilities

Dr Alan Whitehead: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, if he will provide an up-to-date list of the responsibilities of each of his Department's Ministers.

Andrew Stephenson: The up-to-date list of Ministerial responsibilities can be found on our departmental web pages at https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/department-for-business-energy-and-industrial-strategy.

Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy: Disclosure of Information

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy, how many non-disclosure agreements his Department has entered into with departmental staff in each of the last five years.

Andrew Stephenson: Since the creation of the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (July 2016), we have not entered into any non-disclosure agreements with our employees.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office

Burundi: Press Freedom

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to his counterpart in Burundi on the (a) reinstatement of the BBC Africa Service and (b) protection of freedom of the media in that country.

Harriett Baldwin: Freedom of the media is essential in any functioning democracy; people must be allowed to debate issues freely, to challenge their governments, and to be informed by a strong and robust media. We condemn the decision made by the Government of Burundi to revoke the BBC's operating license, particularly in light of the 2020 elections for which a free and independent media is vital. We strongly support the BBC's mission to bring high quality and impartial news to global audiences, including where free speech is limited. The Foreign Secretary has tweeted his disappointment and has urged the Government to reverse this decision. Our Ambassador to Burundi and the UK Special Envoy to the Great Lakes are making representations with counterparts. More broadly, we have supported media freedom in Burundi through financial support to the only remaining independent media house in Burundi, IWACU.

Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterpart in the US Administration on that Administration's to designate Iran's Revolutionary Guards Corps (RGC) as a foreign terrorist organisation; and whether the Government has plans to proscribe the the RGC as a terrorist organisation.

Mark Field: We regularly engage with the US on Iran policy at a variety of levels, including through a visit to Washington by Our Ambassador to Iran last month.We do not routinely comment on whether an organisation is or is not under consideration for proscription. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a whole and a number of associated individuals and entities remain subject to EU sanctions. We have long expressed our deep concerns about the IRGC’s destabilising activity both within and outside Iran, including its illicit economic activity and its role in Iran’s ballistic missile development and support to non-state groups around the region.

Embassies: Huawei

Jo Platt: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many UK (a) embassies and (b) residences use Huawei equipment for their (i) internal and (ii) external communications.

Sir Alan Duncan: The Foreign & Commonwealth Office provides communications to its diplomatic premises around the world through the ECHO network delivered by Vodafone. The department does not keep a register of equipment used in the ECHO network. Many official residences also make use of ECHO connectivity, or contract local communications providers. The department does not keep a central register of equipment used for non-ECHO networks. Where communications are sensitive, data is encrypted to a suitable level across the ECHO network, thereby safeguarding the information.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office: Brexit

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many Foreign Office employees were recalled to the UK from diplomatic posts abroad to assist with preparations for leaving the European Union (a) between June 2016 and December 2018, and (b) between December 2018 and April 2019.

Sir Alan Duncan: No central records have been kept of the number of Foreign and Commonwealth Office employees recalled to the UK from diplomatic posts abroad to assist with preparations for leaving the European Union, and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

India: Antisatellite Weapons

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his Indian counterpart following the announcement on the 27 March that India had successfully conducted an anti-satellite missile test.

Mark Field: ​The Indian Foreign Secretary informed the British High Commission about the test on the day that it occurred. While respecting India's right to progress its peaceful space programme, we urge India – particularly as a member of the Inter-Agency Space Debris Coordination Committee – to refrain from taking actions that would create debris in space, and encourage them to share plans for space launches with partners and neighbouring countries.

Yemen: Armed Conflict

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the scale of the use of child soldiers by each of the respective parties in the conflict in Yemen.

Mark Field: The UK’s position on child soldiers is categorical. We are firmly committed to ending the recruitment and use of child soldiers. We raise allegations of human rights violations or abuses, or violations of International Humanitarian Law, including the use of child soldiers, with all parties to the conflict in Yemen.The use of child soldiers by the Houthi rebels in Yemen is sadly well-documented. The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has regularly reported observing children as young as 10 manning Houthi checkpoints and in September 2017, the UN Group of Eminent Experts’ report found that Houthis had used child soldiers, some as young as eight years old. The Group found that Houthis forcibly recruited children in schools, hospitals and door-to-door and had used children in combat and to plant explosive devices.

Yemen: Armed Conflict

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent steps he has taken to raise the issue of the use of child soldiers in the conflict in Yemen with members of the Saudi-led coalition.

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he took to raise the issue of the use of child soldiers in the conflict in Yemen when he met members of the Houthi rebel leadership.

Mark Field: The UK’s position on child soldiers is categorical. We are firmly committed to ending the recruitment and use of child soldiers. We raise allegations of human rights violations or abuses, or violations of International Humanitarian Law, including the use of child soldiers, with all parties to the conflict in Yemen.

Algeria: Politics and Government

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions he has had with his counterpart in Algeria on the recent protests and resignation of President Bouteflika.

Mark Field: We are closely following events in Algeria. We have discussed the developments there with Algerian officials and civil society members at a variety of levels. We commend the peaceful and dignified nature of the demonstrations over the last few weeks.

Sudan: Demonstrations

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what diplomatic steps he is taking to ensure the safety of protesters in Sudan.

Harriett Baldwin: Since protests began in December we have consistently called on the Sudanese authorities to release all political detainees, stop the use of violence against peaceful protestors, remove all restrictions to freedoms, and allow for a credible political dialogue in a conductive environment with all key Sudanese actors. Our statement of 9 April, made with our partners Norway and the United States, made this clear in the strongest terms. In addition, I made clear to the Sudanese Foreign Minister on 13 March that the use of force against protestors was unacceptable and must end.​

Embassies: Huawei

Dan Jarvis: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, how many UK (a) embassies and (b) residences use Huawei equipment for (i) internal and (ii) external communications.

Sir Alan Duncan: ​The Foreign & Commonwealth Office provides communications to its diplomatic premises around the world through the ECHO network delivered by Vodafone. The department does not keep a register of equipment used in the ECHO network. Many official residences also make use of ECHO connectivity, or contract local communications providers. The department does not keep a central register of equipment used for non-ECHO networks. Where communications are sensitive, data is encrypted to a suitable level across the ECHO network, thereby safeguarding the information.

Russia: Pipelines

Stewart Malcolm McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his European counterparts on Nordstream 2.

Sir Alan Duncan: ​We have significant concerns about the Nordstream 2 pipeline. It is not necessary to meet future European demand for gas and could harm European energy security and the interests of Ukraine. For this reason, I regularly raise our concerns in discussions with key partners, including in the EU. I recently discussed this important issue with my Danish counterpart and will continue to raise it in such conversations.

Hong Kong: Elections

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with (a) his Chinese counterpart and b) the Hong Kong Government on the progress towards holding Hong Kong Chief Executive elections in the future.

Mark Field: The Foreign Secretary raised the issue of Hong Kong with his Chinese counterpart on his last official visit.I visited Hong Kong in November and noted the UK’s continued commitment to the Joint Declaration, and to the faithful implementation of the ‘One Country, Two Systems’ agreement, which guarantees rights and freedoms for Hong Kong’s people.The Joint Declaration sets out that "The chief executive of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region shall be selected by election or through consultations held locally and be appointed by the Central People's Government." Foreign and Commonwealth Office officials continue to raise the issue of political reform in the course of bilateral exchanges on Hong Kong.​

China: Political Prisoners

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with his Chinese counterpart on the convictions of (a) Chan Kin-man, (b) Benny Tai and (c) Chu Yiu-ming.

Mark Field: The aforementioned defendants have yet to undergo sentencing, and given their right to appeal, it would therefore not be appropriate to comment further or in detail on these ongoing legal cases.It would be deeply concerning if this or any other ruling discourages legitimate protest in the future, or discourages young people from engaging in politics.  Hong Kong citizens are guaranteed the right to freedom of assembly and demonstration under the Sino-British Joint Declaration and the Basic Law. Hong Kong's success and stability depend on its high degree of autonomy and respect for the fundamental rights and freedoms enshrined in the Joint Declaration and the Basic Law.

Kuwait: Minority Groups

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps his Department has taken to encourage the Kuwaiti Government to meet its commitments to regularise the status of Bidoon who have a legitimate right to claim citizenship in Kuwait.

Mark Field: ​The British Government has regular dialogue at all levels with the Government of Kuwait. We encourage the Kuwaiti Government to meet its commitments to regularise the status of Bidoon, and to swiftly naturalise those who have a legitimate claim to citizenship. Human rights, including the status of the Bidoon, are also discussed bilaterally at the biannual UK-Kuwait Joint Steering Group meetings, the most recent of which was held in Kuwait in December 2018.

Kuwait: Political Prisoners

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what estimate his Department has made of the number of political prisoners in Kuwaiti prisons.

Mark Field: ​We do not hold details of the number of political prisoners. However, we regularly discuss human rights and reform with the Government of Kuwait - including at the biannual UK-Kuwait Joint Steering Group meetings. If we have specific concerns around convictions or sentencing, we raise these with the Government of Kuwait as part of our wider dialogue on human rights and reform.

Sudan: Rapid Reaction Forces

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether the Rapid Defence Force has been deployed on the streets of Khartoum.

Harriett Baldwin: We are aware of credible reports of the presence of the Rapid Support Forces, as well as other security forces, in the vicinity of protests in Khartoum. We have consistently urged the Sudanese authorities to refrain from using force against civilians.​

Sudan: Politics and Government

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what his policy is on the role of the opposition in Sudan.

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, which opposition Groups in Suday, the UK Government has held discussions with.

Harriett Baldwin: We frequently engage with a broad spectrum of opposition and civil society groups both in London and Sudan. The UK has consistently called on the Sudanese authorities to allow for a credible and inclusive political dialogue in a conducive environment with all key Sudanese actors. We urge the Sudanese authorities, as well as the opposition, to embrace their responsibilities and engage in the development of a legitimate and inclusive political system that meets the requests of the Sudanese people​

Sudan: Politics and Government

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the civil security situation in (a) Khartoum, (b) Darfur and (c) the rest of Sudan.

Harriett Baldwin: We have been particularly concerned by the security situation in Sudan since protests began in December 2018, are monitoring closely, and have condemned the use of lethal force and violence on peaceful protestors across Sudan. Following the announcement of the removal of President Bashir and establishment of a military council led by General Ouf, we have become further concerned for the stability of the security situation. We urge the Sudanese authorities, as well as the opposition, to embrace their responsibilities and engage in the development of a legitimate and inclusive political system that meets the requests of the Sudanese people and ensure there is no more violence used against them.

Brunei: LGBT People and Minority Groups

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what discussions has he had with his (a) Bruneian counterpart and (b) other international partners on the effect of the new penal code in Brunei on (i) the LGBT+ community and (ii) other minority groups.

Mark Field: The Foreign Secretary and I met Brunei’s Foreign Minister Dato Erywan and Finance Minister Dato Amin Liew in London on 11 April. Ahead of this meeting the Foreign Secretary spoke to Dato Erywan on 4 April. The Foreign Secretary expressed the UK’s deep concern about the implementation of the final phases of the Sharia Penal Code in Brunei.The Foreign Secretary has not yet raised the matter with his international counterparts or direct with the LGBT community and other minority groups. But he has made public his opposition to the implementation of Sharia Penal Code in Brunei and has made clear that he will speak out to defend our values globally, including the freedom to be who you are and to love without fear.

Travel Information: LGBT People

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what plans his Department has to issue specialist travel advice for LGBT+ people travelling abroard.

Harriett Baldwin: ​The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) provides travel advice for 225 countries and territories to help British people make informed decisions about foreign travel and plan for a safe trip. We include information and advice for LGBT+ travellers, as well as a link to our LGBT travel guidance page, in the 'Local laws and customs' section of our country travel advice pages. We keep all of our travel advice under constant review and make regular updates, so we encourage all travellers to check our travel advice for their destination regularly and to consider signing up for email alerts before they travel.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office: Brexit

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether his Department has deprioritised any Statutory Instruments in relation to the UK leaving the EU; and if he will publish the criteria his Department uses to deprioritise those Instruments.

Sir Alan Duncan: ​In preparation for no deal, the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has laid Statutory Instruments (SIs) relating to sanctions, the Kimberley Process and the Overseas Territories, under the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act (2018) and EU Withdrawal Act (2018). On sanctions, the FCO decided to lay Regulations before exit for those regimes with particular UK interests and where the EU's designations might change after exit. It was decided that it was not necessary to have a full domestic SI in place for other regimes for exit day, because it was possible to rely on retained EU law for a period.

Sudan: Politics and Government

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of (a) the merits of the Government of Sudan’s attribution of blame for recent violence against protestors to Darfuris and (b) the risks faced by Darfuris in (i) Khartoum and (ii) Sudan.

Harriett Baldwin: We are aware of the allegations made that Darfuris are responsible for recent violence against protestors in Sudan. We judge that these are not credible, and do not assess there to be any particular ethnic dimension to the protests movement or the response to it. The UK is following closely the protests in Sudan and condemns the response of the Sudanese authorities, including the use of lethal force by security forces and arbitrary detentions in response to peaceful protests.Along with Troika partners, we have called for restraint by the authorities and continue to urge them at every opportunity to respect the rights of all the people of Sudan.

Sudan: Human Rights

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, whether he has made representations to his Sudanese counterpart on allegations of human rights violations during recent protests.

Harriett Baldwin: The UK remains deeply concerned by the response to protests in Sudan, including the use of lethal force and arbitrary detentions in response to peaceful protests. Our Ambassador in Khartoum has frequently raised these concerns directly with the Government of Sudan. Further, I raised our concerns with the Foreign Minister of Sudan on 13 March where I emphasised the importance of human rights. Most recently, on 10 April, we (alongside US and Norway) released a statement calling for the Sudanese authorities to end the use of violence and to remove all restrictions to freedoms.​

Press Freedom

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, if he will take steps with Amnesty International UK to ensure that the UK maintains the highest standards of press freedom free from police interference, as part of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s 2019 Media Freedom Campaign.

Mark Field: ​We are already consulting Amnesty International and other civil society organisations on the design of the media freedom campaign. We are committed to building a global environment in which a free and vibrant media can flourish. As part of our leadership on this international agenda, the UK will continue to maintain the highest standards of press freedom, while retaining the right to take lawful and proportionate action to prevent and investigate crime, in accordance with human rights treaties and the Human Rights Act 1998.

Press Freedom: Northern Ireland

Grahame Morris: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, as part of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office’s 2019 Media Freedom Campaign, what steps is the Minister taking to address Amnesty International concerns about press freedom being at risk in Northern Ireland due to the arrests of investigative journalists.

Mark Field: We do not comment on ongoing legal proceedings.

Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps

John Lamont: To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the involvement of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps in terrorist activity in the region.

Mark Field: The Government is deeply concerned by Iran's destabilising involvement in regional conflicts, including in Syria and Yemen, through the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and IRGC Qods Force, and by reported financial and military support to militant and proscribed groups, such as Hizballah and the Houthis. The Foreign Secretary raised these concerns directly during his visit to Iran last November.

Department for Exiting the European Union

EU Institutions

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, pursuant to the Answer of 22 February to Question 221573, whether the Government has plans to (a) merge the respective replacements for the 45 respective EU agencies of which the UK is currently a member into the Government’s three announced new agencies, or (b) create further agencies to replace the EU agencies.

Kwasi Kwarteng: No decisions have yet been made on our future relationship with the EU's agencies and bodies after leaving the EU. We are considering very carefully a range of options. In most cases we anticipate that repatriated EU functions can be absorbed by existing UK departments and existing public bodies. Prior to any decisions on establishing new UK-level bodies, the Government always looks to minimise disruption and costs, which includes considering alternative options, such as the use of existing public bodies.

Department for International Development: Secondment

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, pursuant to the Answer of  25 March 2019 to Question 234783 on Department for International Development: Secondment, what teams within his Department will the 39 requested roles from the Department for International Development will be in.

Kwasi Kwarteng: The Department continues to recruit talent from across the civil service, the wider public sector and the private sector. The Department for Exiting the European Union has over 700 staff working with other government departments on all aspects of EU Exit policy. Those staff brought in from the Department for International Development pursuant to the answer to Question 234783, will work alongside the rest of the Department.

Department of Health and Social Care

Embryos

Sir Edward Leigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many human embryos were discarded in the last 12 months for which figures are available; how many human embryos were transferred to uteri in order to establish pregnancies; and what the cumulative figures are for those procedures were made legal.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The information requested is shown in the following table.  Between 1 January 2017 and 31 December 2017Between 1 August 1991 and 31 December 2017Embryos discarded in the course of treatment, or subsequent to having been taken out of storage174,622 embryos2,753,560 embryosEmbryos transferred to uteri in order to establish pregnancies84,004 embryos1,900,901 embryosSource: The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) The data is as shown on the HFEA’s register database on 9 April 2019. This is a live database so these figures reflect the data on this day are likely to change over time.

Embryos

Sir Edward Leigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many human eggs, that were frozen have been (a) thawed, (b) been fertilised in the last 12 months for which figures are available; how many of those eggs were (i) developed into embryos and (ii) transferred to a recipient uterus; and of those transferred to a uterus, how many resulted in (A) live births, (B) early pregnancy losses and (C) stillbirths.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The information requested is shown in the following table.Year of cycle: 2017Eggs thawed5,824Eggs fertilised4,696Embryos created3,270Embryos transferred748Live births202Early pregnancy losses19StillbirthsLess than 5Source: The Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) The data is as shown on the HFEA’s register database on 9 April 2019. This is a live database so these figures reflect the data on this day are likely to change over time.

Embryos

Sir Edward Leigh: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Answer of 1 April 2014, Official Report, column WA177-8 and the Answer of 22 November 2016, Official Report, column, HL3075, how many families have been assisted by mitochondrial donation techniques in the past year; how many human embryos were deliberately destroyed in the course of attempting pronuclear transfer for which figures are available since the technique was first licensed for clinical application; how many human embryos were generated following spindle-chromosomal complex transfer for which figures are available since the technique was first licensed for clinical application; and how many live births there have been in the UK as a result of (a) pronuclear transfer and (b) spindle-chromosomal complex transfer.

Jackie Doyle-Price: All applications for use of mitochondrial donation techniques are considered by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA). 15 applications were received between 1 August 2017 and 31 January 2019, of which 14 were approved. The HFEA has advised that eight embryos have been discarded since pronuclear transfer was first licensed for clinical application. No human embryos have been generated following spindle-chromosomal complex transfer since the technique was first licensed. There have been no live births in the United Kingdom to date following pronuclear transfer or spindle-chromosomal complex transfer.

Mental Health Services

Dr Dan Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to increase the availability of talking therapies other than cognitive behavioural therapy in the NHS.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Five Year Forward View for Mental Health recommended that NHS England invest to increase access to psychological therapies for people with psychosis, bipolar disorder and personality disorder. NHS England is working with Health Education England to invest in commissioning new training places for staff to undertake courses in National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) recommended therapies for these conditions starting in the new academic year 2019/20, including dialectical behaviour therapy courses. The Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT) programme provides a range of NICE approved and evidence based therapies. In addition to cognitive behavioural therapy based therapies, counselling for depression, dynamic interpersonal therapy, interpersonal therapy and couples therapy are all NICE recommended treatments that are available through IAPT. Provision for these therapies will increase as IAPT continues to expand in line with our commitments. The National Health Service has published the IAPT manual at the following link: https://www.england.nhs.uk/wp-content/uploads/2019/02/improving-access-to-psychological-therapies-manual.pdf

Mental Health Services

Dr Dan Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the availability of dialectical behavioural therapy in the NHS.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Five Year Forward View for Mental Health recommended that NHS England invest to increase access to psychological therapies for people with psychosis, bipolar disorder and personality disorder. NHS England is working with Health Education England to invest in commissioning new training places for staff to undertake courses in National Institute for Health and Care Excellence recommended therapies for these conditions starting in the new academic year 2019/20, including dialectical behaviour therapy courses.

Mental Health Services

Dr Dan Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the availability of family therapy in the NHS.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Department has not made an assessment of the availability of family therapy in the National Health Service. NHS England has funded 863 new course places commissioned by Health Education England for Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for psychosis (CBTp) and Family Intervention (FI) training at a cost of £1.7 million in 2018/19 and £1 million in 2019/20 for adult Early Intervention in Psychosis (EIP) and Community Mental Health Team staff. This is in part to support delivery of the EIP national access and waiting time standard, which includes access to relevant NICE-recommended psychological therapies for psychosis, namely CBTp and FI. NHS England’s Children and Young People’s Improving Access to Psychological Therapies programme has, jointly with Health Education England, trained both new and existing staff to deliver evidence-based therapies across a range of sectors offering children and young people’s mental health care. The training courses include parenting training for conduct disorder, Systemic Family Practice (SFP) for conduct disorder and depression and self-harm, and SFP for eating disorders, which is linked to the delivery of community-based eating disorder services. Further information on available services can be found in children and young people’s mental health local transformation plans, which form part of local sustainability and transformation plans.

Prisoners: Drugs

Dr Dan Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans he has to improve addictions services in prisons that are available to prisoners with drug dependency.

Jackie Doyle-Price: All adult prisons in England have a specialist substance misuse service, commissioned by NHS England Regional Health and Justice Commissioners. These are in line with NHS England’s ‘Prison Substance Misuse Service Specification’, published in April 2018, and ‘Drug misuse and dependence: UK guidelines on clinical management’, published in July 2017. In addition, NHS England work in close partnership with the Ministry of Justice in the joint management and development of the Drug Recovery Prison model, and are currently scoping further interventions to positively impact on recovery and promote self-management such as social prescribing approaches including sport.

Bulimia

Mark Pritchard: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what plans his Department has to reduce the number of patients with bulimia.

Jackie Doyle-Price: This Government recognises that early intervention is vital when treating people with eating disorders and is committed to ensuring everyone has access to timely treatment based on clinical need. Waiting time standards have been introduced to improve access to eating disorders services for children and young people. This early intervention can help prevent problems continuing into adulthood. The NHS is making good progress towards these waiting times, with latest data for Quarter 3 2018/19 (October – December 2018) showing that 80.7% of young people started treatment for an urgent case within one week against a target of 95% by 2020/21. This report also showed that 86.8% of young people started treatment for a routine case within four weeks against a target of 95% by 2020/21. The ‘Clinically-led Review of NHS Access Standards Interim Report’, published in March 2019, states that NHS England will test four-week waiting times for adult and older adult community mental health teams with selected local areas. As part of this work, the report states that NHS England will “consider the interfaces with specialist community mental health services, particularly where there is an existing evidence base for rapid direct access, such as adult eating disorder services, or early intervention in psychosis services, for which there is already a national access and waiting time standard in place.”

National Institute of Health Research

Chris Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure that the National Institute of Health Research has adequate capacity to conduct clinical trials.

Caroline Dinenage: The National Institute for Health Research (NIHR) was funded by £1.06 billion in 2018/19 by the Department. This provides significant investment to support the United Kingdom’s clinical trials base. The NIHR provides the support, expertise and facilities the National Health Service needs to undertake world-leading research including clinical trials. The NIHR’s centres and facilities, including the NIHR Biomedical Research Centres (BRCs) and the NIHR’s Clinical Research Facilities across England, funded by £981 million over five years from 2017, undertake and support early translational medicine including clinical trials funded by industry (commercial contract and collaborative), public and charity research funders. The NIHR Clinical Research Network (CRN) supports the delivery of clinical trials and other studies in the NHS to quality, time and target. These trials and other studies are funded by charities, other non-commercial funders, and the life sciences industry. The NIHR’s CRN provides world-class health service infrastructure, for example research support staff such as clinical research nurses; and research support services such as pharmacy, pathology and radiology, to support clinical research in the NHS in England. In 2017/18 the CRN recruited 725,333 participants into 4,901 clinical research studies. The NIHR also provides funding to support the UK Clinical Research Collaboration Registered Clinical Trial Units. These specialist units support researchers in the design, conduct, analysis and publication of clinical trials and other well-designed studies. Training in clinical trials is supported through a range of awards provided by the NIHR Academy to support people who are looking to start or advance a career in health research methodology, including clinical trial design. In addition to the NIHR research Infrastructure in the NHS, the NIHR also has a range of research funding programmes, including the Health Technology Assessment programme, which provide research funding for clinical trials. The UK is leading the way in improving clinical trials, undertaking novel and more efficient trial designs that will develop new medicines, diagnostics and medical devices for patients. A key role for NIHR is to ensure that we have the capacity to conduct innovative and complex clinical trial designs.

Medical Treatments: Prescription Drugs

Sir Kevin Barron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment the Government has made of the effectiveness of the implementation of the guidance entitled Items which should not be routinely prescribed in primary care: Guidance for CCGs.

Seema Kennedy: We are informed by NHS England that in the period up to and including October 2018, spend on the 18 low priority medicines has fallen by £31.1 million from £133.6 million, compared to 2016/17. This represents a reduction of 23%. The volume of medicines prescribed reduced by 27% and the number of patients prescribed these medicines reduced by 32%. In addition, NHS England has worked with PrescQIPP and the NHS Business Services Authority to refine its assessment of the amount of money spent on over the counter medicines. In the 12 months to January 2019, the total National Health Service spend in England on over the counter medicines was £449.4 million. This was a saving on total spend of £25.9 million from the 12 months to January 2018, which was £475.3 million. This saving does not account for the potential impact to the NHS from a reduced number of general practitioner appointments, for which no assessment has been made. These savings will be reinvested into the NHS, ensuring patients can access high quality care now and in the future.

Medical Treatments: Prescription Drugs

Sir Kevin Barron: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the guidance published by NHS England, Items which should not routinely be prescribed in primary care: Guidance for CCGs, what estimate his Department has made of the number of patients that have been refused prescriptions for over-the-counter medicines by their GP since the publication of that guidance.

Seema Kennedy: The Department has made no assessment of the number of patients refused prescriptions for over the counter medicines.

Breast Cancer: Drugs

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether there are breast cancer medicines that are not expected to have a six-week supply stockpiled by 12 April 2018.

Stephen Hammond: Leaving the European Union with a deal remains the Government’s top priority. However, as a responsible Government we must plan for every possible outcome including ‘no deal’. The Government has been working closely with industry to ensure the supply of medicines, including medical radioisotopes, can continue uninterrupted in the event of a ‘no deal’ EU exit. The Department is unable to discuss specific companies and medicines because, to reassure participating companies, we have committed to treating all information received confidentially, securely and to use it only for the purposes of the Department’s programme. However, we continue to work with all suppliers to ensure their plans remain on track. We are confident that, if everyone does what they need to do, the supply of medicines and medical products will be uninterrupted.

Government Departments: Databases

Chris Green: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment he has made of the Government's development of combined interpretable data sets.

Jackie Doyle-Price: Access to comprehensive, accurate and timely data is critical to the safe, effective and efficient running of the health and social care system in England. We set out our ambition to introduce and use new technology including the innovative use of data in ‘The future of healthcare: our vision for digital, data and technology in health and care’. Our focus is on getting the digital architecture of the health and care system right, including open standards, secure identity and interoperability, which are critical to the safe and successful use of technology, ensuring that systems talk to each other and that the right data gets to the right place at the right time. New technologies offer great potential to support preventative, predictive and personalised care. For example, enabling data sets to be linked effectively provides the opportunity to use data-driven technologies such as artificial intelligence to help diagnose diseases or conditions and to gain better insights into treatments and preventions that could benefit all of society. We recognise that despite recent progress and many areas of excellence the digital transformation of the health and care system is the most important change we will make over the next decade. In order to do this effectively and efficiently, we have established NHSX to bring together in one place the responsibility for driving the transformation of technology, digital and data policy and implementation.

Cancer: Drugs

Mr Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps is the Government taking to ensure timely access to maintenance medication for people with cancer.

Seema Kennedy: The Department fully understands that maintaining access to cancer medication is vitally important to many people in this country. There is already a team within the Department that deals with medicine supply issues arising both in the community and hospitals. We have well established procedures to deal with medicine shortages, from whatever cause, and work closely with the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency, the pharmaceutical industry, NHS England and others operating in the supply chain to help prevent shortages and to ensure that the risks to patients are minimised when they do arise. If we are aware of issues with cancer medications we work with national clinical experts to advise on management plans and ensure that appropriate information is provided to the National Health Service and specialist patient groups.

Medical Treatments

Mr Clive Betts: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the appraisal process for personalised treatments for small patient groups.

Seema Kennedy: The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) is the independent body that provides guidance on the prevention and treatment of ill health and the promotion of good health and social care. Through its technology appraisal and highly specialised technologies programmes, NICE plays an important role in ensuring that patients are able to benefit from effective new treatments, including treatments for small numbers of patients. NICE has recommended a number of drugs for small patient populations through these programmes that are now routinely funded by the National Health Service for eligible patients. NICE periodically reviews its methods and processes to ensure that they keep pace with developments in science and healthcare. NICE will be carrying out a review of its technology appraisal and highly specialised technologies methods in 2019/20.

Bowel Cancer: Screening

Alex Norris: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the timescale is for the introduction of the faecal immunochemical test for the bowel cancer screening programme in England.

Seema Kennedy: The UK National Screening Committee advised that Faecal Immunochemical Test (FIT) is a more sensitive and accurate test than guaiac faecal occult blood test (FOBt), and that more bowel cancers could be detected, and recommended that FIT should replace the currently used FOB test. Full replacement of the current FOBt with FIT across all Hubs in the NHS Bowel Cancer Screening Programme is planned for summer 2019.

Social Services

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what progress his Department’s has made on the timeframe for publishing the Green Paper on social care.

Caroline Dinenage: The Green Paper on adult social care remains a priority for this Government and we will be publishing the Green Paper at the earliest opportunity.

Silica: Health Hazards

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the effect on human health of exposure to silica dust; what (a) guidance and (b) legislative measures are in place to control human exposure to silica dust; and if he will make a statement.

Seema Kennedy: Many studies have indicated that silica dust can be harmful when inhaled. In the United Kingdom, all workplaces must comply with the Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002, which sets a workplace exposure limit for silica. Occupational health and safety is under the remit of the Health and Safety Executive, who have issued guidance and advice to help employers manage risks and to raise awareness of the importance of controlling exposure to harmful materials at work which is available at the following link: http://www.hse.gov.uk/pubns/indg463.pdf

Asthma: Medical Equipment

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to encourage the use of more environmentally-friendly inhalers.

Seema Kennedy: The Sustainable Development Unit, a joint NHS England and Public Health England unit, has established a cross sector working group on low carbon inhalers. A cross system approach is now being developed into a system wide implementation plan, with specific actions being delivered by individual members of the group. All actions are supporting progress towards or to exceed the NHS Long Term Plan commitment on low carbon inhalers. This will contribute to the overall National Health Service commitment in the Long Term Plan to reduce carbon emissions in line with the UK Climate Change Act. On 8 April 2019, the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) published a patient decision aid to help people with asthma, alongside health professionals, to identify which inhalers could meet their needs and control their symptoms. Where several inhalers could be viable options, the decision aid helps clinicians and patients choose the more environmentally friendly option, with a lower carbon footprint. It is co-funded by the SDU. This is the first time NICE has included climate change impacts in any guidance. The decision aid also highlights the need for used devices to be returned to pharmacies for environmentally safe disposal. A link to NICE’s decision aid can be found at the following link:https://www.nice.org.uk/guidance/ng80/resources/inhalers-for-asthma-patient-decision-aid-pdf-6727144573

Mental Health Services: Older People

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent assessment his Department has made of the adequacy of mental health provision for the elderly.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The NHS Long Term Plan, published on 7 January 2019, commits the National Health Service to improving the provision of mental health support for older people with a range of needs and diagnoses, including common mental health problems and severe mental illnesses. This improvement applies across all mental and physical health services and settings, including Improving Access to Psychological Therapies (IAPT), community, crisis and liaison mental health care as well as new models of integrated care for older people living with frailty. The National Implementation Framework, to be published later this spring, will provide further information on how the Long Term Plan will drive improvements in older people’s mental health care. The Department and NHS England remains committed to increasing older people’s access to psychological therapies via the IAPT programme. Data shows that once older people access psychological therapy in IAPT they achieve positive outcomes. The recovery rate for those people aged 65 and over who access treatment has increased from 57.8% in 2014/15 to 64.9% in 2017/18.

Organs: Donors

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how many organ donors there are in the UK as of March 2019.

Jackie Doyle-Price: More than 52,000 people are alive today because of a life-saving transplant, due to the selfless generosity of organ donors and their families. In 2017-18, there were 1,574 deceased donors and 1,051 living donors, leading to a total of 5,090 transplants, in the United Kingdom. Although 80% of people support organ donation in principle, only 38% or 25 million people had registered a decision to donate on the NHS Organ Donor Register. To better reflect the view of most people, the Organ Donation (Deemed Consent Act) 2019 will be introducing a new system of consent for organ and tissue donation in England, from 2020, to help increase the number of donors. NHS Blood and Transplant will launch a 12-month communication campaign before the law comes into force, to raise awareness of the changes and the options available under the new system.

Pregnancy: Sodium Valproate

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what measures are being adopted to ensure that every Healthcare Professional dealing with female patients prescribed Sodium Valproate between 15 – 45 years old receive the Pregnancy Prevention Program and advice on other suitable anticonvulsant medications.

Cat Smith: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what funds will be made available to ensure further research into the possible association between birth defects and persistent developmental disorders associated with paternal Valproate treatment.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has worked with professional bodies and healthcare organisations on implementing measures to raise awareness of the significant risks associated with sodium valproate in pregnancy and to support healthcare professionals to comply with the valproate Pregnancy Prevention Programme. This includes consideration of alternative treatment for girls and women of childbearing potential. It is the responsibility of every healthcare professional involved in the prescribing and dispensing of valproate to make sure women are aware of the serious risks in pregnancy and are enrolled in the statutory Pregnancy Prevention Programme. United Kingdom Chief Medical Officers wrote to all healthcare professionals in April 2018 to inform them of the actions required and in September 2018 UK Chief Pharmaceutical Officers contacted all pharmacists to remind them of their responsibilities when dispensing valproate. This has been reinforced by messages from the professional regulators to their members and by articles in the MHRA’s electronic bulletin Drug Safety Update in September and again in December last year calling all healthcare professionals to examine whether they are prescribing in compliance with the new measures. Professional bodies have produced guidance to support their members in the implementation of the Pregnancy Prevention Programme and The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence has produced an overarching prescribing guideline for valproate. The NHS England General Practitioner (GP) contract framework now includes a Quality Indicator for valproate prescribing which will incentivise GP practices to have a robust system in place to ensure compliance with the new measures. The Care Quality Commission is checking compliance with the requirements of the valproate pregnancy prevention programme during routine inspections and investigating any complaints of non-compliance with these requirements. The recent European review of valproate in pregnancy considered a possible association between birth defects and persistent developmental disorders associated with paternal valproate treatment at the time of conception. The review concluded that there was insufficient evidence at present to establish such a link, but further research was required. Therefore, as an outcome of the review the marketing authorisation holders of valproate products were required to undertake a retrospective observational study to investigate the association between paternal exposure to valproate and the risk of congenital anomalies and neurodevelopmental disorders including autism in their offspring. The design of the study is under evaluation by the European Medicines Agency’s Pharmacovigilance Risk Assessment Committee.

Plastic Surgery: Regulation

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has plans to introduce regulations on dermal fillers.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency is responsible for regulating all medicines and medical devices in the United Kingdom. Currently, a dermal filler may be regulated either as a general product, a medicine or a medical device, depending on its composition and intended use. From May 2020 all dermal fillers, irrespective of their composition and intended use, will be regulated as medical devices under Annex XVI of the Medical Device Regulations (EU 2017/745). The Regulations will significantly strengthen the quality assurance and safety of dermal fillers and ensure a consistent legal status of these products on the UK market. This will lead to a stronger market surveillance of these products. The Government is committed to improving the safety of cosmetic procedures through better training for practitioners, and clear information so that people can make informed decisions about their care. The growth in non-surgical treatments increases the need for consumer protection and we are currently working with stakeholders to strengthen the regulation of cosmetic procedures. We urge anyone seeking a cosmetic procedure to take the time to find a reputable, insured and appropriately qualified practitioner who is either subject to statutory regulation or on a voluntary register accredited by the Professional Standards Authority.

Plastic Surgery: Insurance

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether he has plans to monitor the (a) probity and (b) diligence of insurance companies that provide insurance products to aesthetic practitioners.

Jackie Doyle-Price: All regulated healthcare professionals are required to have in place an indemnity arrangement which provides appropriate cover for their practice. The cover can be an insurance policy, an indemnity arrangement, or a combination of both. The Department has recently consulted on appropriate clinical negligence cover for all regulated healthcare practitioners. The responses are being analysed and a response will be issued in due course. There are no plans to introduce a requirement for indemnity arrangements in relation to the provision of aesthetic procedures by non-regulated healthcare professionals. Insurance products are financial services and are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority and the Prudential Regulatory Authority.

Ophthalmology

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 4 April 2019 to Question 239204 on Ophthalmology, whether the NHS Improvement impact assessment (a) covers changes affecting patient access to combined Minimally Invasive Glaucoma Surgery (MIGS) and cataract operation and (b) recognises the procedure as a common practice; and whether the new tariff price was assessed to cover cataract and MIGS as a single operation.

Seema Kennedy: In considering the proposed prices for the 2019/20 national tariff, the ophthalmology Clinical Expert Working Group (EWG) specifically stated that minimally invasive glaucoma surgery (MIGS) and cataract activity are commonly done together and it would not usually be in the patient’s best interest to do them separately. The prices assigned to HRG BZ91 in the 2019/20 tariff cover cataract and MIGS as a single operation. The EWG and Royal College of Ophthalmology agreed that the BZ91 prices were appropriate, relative to the prices for other ophthalmology procedures.

Ophthalmology

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 4 April 2019 to Question 239205 on Ophthalmology, if his Department will publish the (a) data and (b) analysis on which NHS Improvement based the assessment that indicates that Minimally Invasive Glaucoma Surgery (MIGS) is cheaper than other glaucoma procedures; and what the difference is in reference costs for MIGS and cataract operation since the last tariff prices were set.

Seema Kennedy: The current codes do not allow differentiation between minimally invasive glaucoma surgery (MIGS) and non-MIGS activity. In the development of each national tariff, NHS England and NHS Improvement undertakes an overall assessment of the impact of proposals. This includes consideration of change in expenditure on different types of care in ‘2019/20 National Tariff Payment System – A consultation notice: Impact assessment’. While this provides an overall assessment of impact, detailed feedback on proposed prices for individual Healthcare Resource Groups (units of healthcare) is sought from clinical Expert Working Groups (EWGs). EWGs are managed by the NHS Digital National Casemix Office and comprise clinicians representing specific specialities. This is to ensure that the published tariff supports clinical practice.

Human Papillomavirus: Vaccination

Hannah Bardell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to ensure a high level of up-take of the HPV vaccine throughout the country.

Seema Kennedy: Coverage of the human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine in teenage girls is high with nearly 84% receiving the full course of vaccine. Public Health England (PHE) developed a range of materials targeted at teenagers and their parents to provide information about the HPV vaccination programme to help them make an informed choice. Local immunisation providers should share this information and signpost teenagers and their parents to these materials when the offer of HPV vaccination is underway in schools. These materials can be viewed at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/immunisation#human-papillomavirus-(hpv)-for-girls PHE also provides information and training materials for health professionals to ensure they can adequately respond to queries or concerns. These training materials can be viewed at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/human-papillomavirus-hpv-the-green-book-chapter-18a In addition, PHE has also worked closely with several charities such as Jo’s Cervical Cancer Trust and the Teenage Cancer Trust to develop lesson plans for schools to use to teach young people about cervical cancer and the HPV vaccine. These can be seen at the following links: https://www.jostrust.org.uk/information-healthcare-professionals/information-teachers https://www.teenagecancertrust.org/about-us/what-we-do/cancer-awareness/resources#cervicalcancer

Human Papillomavirus: Vaccination

Hannah Bardell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to tackle misinformation on the safety of the HPV vaccine.

Seema Kennedy: Public Health England (PHE) has worked closely with both mainstream and social media to provide positive messages on the human papillomavirus (HPV) and other vaccinations for target groups to tackle misinformation on the safety of the HPV vaccine. In addition, PHE has developed a range of materials targeted at teenagers and their parents to provide information about HPV vaccination programme to help them make an informed choice. Local immunisation providers should share this information and signpost teenagers and their parents to these materials when the offer of HPV vaccination is underway in schools. These materials can be viewed at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/immunisation#human-papillomavirus-(hpv)-for-girls PHE also provides information and training materials for health professionals to ensure they can adequately respond to queries or concerns. These training materials can be viewed at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/human-papillomavirus-hpv-the-green-book-chapter-18a

Medical Equipment: Computers

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment his Department has made of the effect of the regulation of section 6 of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 on medical devices containing computers.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Department has not made any assessment of the effect of the regulation of section 6 of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 on medical devices containing computers. Section 6 of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 places duties on any person who designs, manufacturers, imports or supplies any article for use at work to ensure that it will be safe and without risks to health. In general this applies to all devices used in the workplace but there are exceptions, such as medical devices, which are regulated by specific regulations that set out more detailed duties. The Medical Devices Regulations 2002 deal with the design, manufacture, import or supply of medical devices, including those which may contain computers/software. It is for the designer, manufacturer, importer or supplier to demonstrate that their product is safe. These regulations transpose the requirements of the following European Directives concerning product safety for medical devices:- Council Directive 90/385/EEC on Active Implantable Medical Devices (AIMDD)(1990);- Council Directive 93/42/EEC on Medical Devices (MDD)(1993); and- Council Directive 98/79/EC on In Vitro Diagnostic Medical Devices (IVDMD)(1998). The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) regulates medical devices in the United Kingdom. The following link provides more information on MHRA and its role: https://www.gov.uk/topic/medicines-medical-devices-blood/medical-devices-regulation-safety

Inflammatory Bowel Disease

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care,  what estimate he has made of the change in the number of people diagnosed with Crohn's disease between 2008 and 2018.

Seema Kennedy: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Infant Mortality

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 1 May 2018 to Question 137006, whether he commission an assessment of the reasons for the trends in data provided by the Office for National Statistics in relation to infant mortality rates in households in different income quintiles.

Jackie Doyle-Price: We have not commissioned such an assessment. Public Health England (PHE) monitors trends in infant mortality at national and local level as part of the Public Health Outcomes Framework, which is statutory guidance for local authorities and published on PHE’s fingertips platform. Inequalities in infant mortality are monitored by decile of deprivation, which is updated every year and available at the following link:https://fingertips.phe.org.uk/profile/public-health-outcomes-framework/data#page/7/gid/1000044/pat/6/par/E12000001/ati/102/are/E06000005/iid/92196/age/2/sex/4

Department of Health and Social Care: Brexit

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether his Department has deprioritised any Statutory Instruments in relation to the UK leaving the EU; and if he will publish the criteria his Department uses to deprioritise those Instruments.

Stephen Hammond: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Medical Records

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve data sharing between private and NHS hospitals.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Acute Data Alignment Programme (ADAPt) was established on 9 January 2018, and was launched in June 2018. The ADAPt Programme is jointly led by NHS Digital and the Private Healthcare Information Network (PHIN) in partnership with stakeholders from the Department, NHS Improvement, NHS England, and the Care Quality Commission. The programme has served to develop good working relationships between PHIN, NHS Digital and key stakeholders. The first phase focuses on ensuring that independent hospitals and National Health Service private patient units are submitting robust, complete and accurate data to PHIN, and that performance measures already required to be published by Order of the Competition and Markets Authority can be achieved as quickly as possible. The second phase will ensure the data flows from independent providers into NHS Digital, just as it does from NHS providers, enabling consistency in measurement and understanding of both risk of harm and health outcomes for patients wherever they are treated.

Cannabis: Medical Treatments

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent estimate his Department has made of the number of NHS prescriptions for medicine in which THC is the dominant ingredient.

Seema Kennedy: The Department of Health and Social Care has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Pregnancy Tests

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, pursuant to the Answer of 9 April 2019  to Question 239926 on Pregnancy Tests, for what reason previous studies were not considered robust; and what the extensive limitations were.

Yasmin Qureshi: To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what the criteria were for selecting members of the Expert Working Group for Hormone Pregnancy Tests.

Jackie Doyle-Price: The Commission on Human Medicines Expert Working Group on Hormone Pregnancy Tests considered that the key limitations of previous studies related to the accuracy of recording of what drug was taken by the women; clarity over the timing of administration during pregnancy; adjustment for confounding factors; selection of controls; and the statistical methodology. The Expert Group used a quality scoring system to evaluate the quality of each individual study according to a set of seven pre-defined quality criteria. The criteria and score agreed by the Expert Working Group for each study are published in Annex 27 of the final report. The criteria for selecting members of the Expert Working Group were based on the expertise needed to evaluate all aspects of the questions before the Group and the types of data that would need to be assessed. Membership included those with expertise in pharmaco-epidemiology, including perinatal and paediatric epidemiology, medical statistics, embryology, clinical genetics, gynaecology, reproductive endocrinology, toxicology and pharmacology. The process for selecting members was in line with established policy for expert groups of the Commission on Human Medicines, with the nominations being agreed by the Commission and endorsed by Ministers.

Department for International Development

Developing Countries: Tuberculosis

Dr Dan Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what plans she has to ensure that medicines and dugs are developed by the pharmaceutical industry for people in low and middle income countries with TB.

Harriett Baldwin: The UK Government is a global leader in Research and Development for TB, and one of the largest funders of TB research worldwide. Increasing access to medicines and diagnostics in low income countries is a priority for DFID especially for diseases like TB DFID is a leading supporter of Product Development Partnerships (PDPs), bringing together the strengths of academia and the pharmaceutical industry, in public-private partnerships to develop new therapies and diagnostics for diseases of poverty. With these partnerships new products can to be developed for public health needs, de-linking the cost of research and development from the cost of the final product. As part of this effort we are investing £37.5m in the TB Alliance for the development of new drug regimens, particularly where current treatments are failing due to antimicrobial resistance. This includes an additional £7.5m, announced by the Secretary of State for International Development at the UNGA 2018 High Level Meeting on TB. The UK Government also supports applied health research relevant to TB service delivery, through a number of partnerships with other UK and global funders.

Developing Countries: Mental Health Services

Dr Dan Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what plans she has to support the training of mental health professionals in low and middle income countries.

Harriett Baldwin: In DFID's Disability Inclusion Strategy published last December, we committed to step up our work on mental health. We are taking a comprehensive and rights-based approach that promotes well-being for all, including those with psychosocial disabilities. We also work to strengthen health systems so that countries are able to meet the health needs of their population and improve the provision, equity and quality of mental health services, including building health worker capacity. In February 2019 DFID announced its support for the largest country roll-out of WHO’s Quality Rights initiative in Ghana, which delivers training among health and non-health professionals to improve quality of care across all mental health services.

HIV Infection: Overseas Aid

Stephen Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, how much her Department has spent on bilateral funding for HIV a programmes in each year since 2009.

Harriett Baldwin: DFID is one of the largest funders of the global HIV response, spending over £1.5bn between 2010/11 and 2016/17. The majority of our investments to the HIV response are directed through organisations such as the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria, Unitaid and UNAIDS, given their greater reach and scale. Since 2009, DFID has spent a total of £640m on bilateral funding for HIV programmes. 2009 / 2010 - £146 million2010 / 2011 - £172 million2011 / 2012 - £96 million2012 / 2013 - £90 million2013 / 2014 - £48 million2014 / 2015 - £34 million2015 / 2016 - £27 million2016 / 2017 – £27 million 2017 / 18 spend will be published later in 2019.

Human Papilloma Virus: Vaccination

Stephen Twigg: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking in its capacity as a board member of Gavi the Vaccine Alliance to improve access to the human papilloma virus vaccine.

Harriett Baldwin: The UK is a longstanding member of the Board of Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance and has supported Gavi’s human papilloma virus (HPV) vaccine agenda since its introduction to Gavi support in 2013. Gavi support has seen HPV vaccine demonstration programmes occur in 30 countries, the first step to introducing the vaccine. Through our seat on the Gavi Board, the UK has encouraged this greater access for the HPV vaccine. The UK has also supported Gavi in expanding its remit to reach beyond childhood immunisations and enable adolescent girls to be eligible for the HPV vaccine. Gavi’s approach to market shaping means that all vaccines, including HPV, are more accessible and affordable. Its health system strengthening support results in better health services which can expand to include new vaccines for adolescent girls. Through our strong engagement in Gavi, we will continue to focus on ensuring that Gavi makes strong progress in improving access and coverage across all life-saving vaccines, including the HPV vaccine.

Department for International Development: Secondment

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 3 April 2019 to Question 238674 on Department for International Development: Secondment, if she will make publish the detailed prioritisation exercise.

Harriett Baldwin: DFID’s prioritisation work was undertaken internally at directorate level to review internal delivery plans alongside the core principle that DFID’s essential business (delivering the 0.7% commitment and providing lifesaving humanitarian response) must be protected. These plans are under constant review and as such are subject to change. There are no plans to share the detail of this work externally.

Poverty: Overseas Aid

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of  25 March 2019 to Question 238674 on Department for International Development: Secondment, whether the essential delivery objectives of her Department includes ending extreme poverty.

Harriett Baldwin: All Government departments have been requested to restrict their work to essential business only, allowing all other staff to be available for EU exit related priorities. For DFID, the definition of essential work is spending 0.7% of GNI (Gross National Income) on international development in an effective and value for money way and providing lifesaving humanitarian response. Ending extreme poverty remains a departmental strategic priority.

Department for International Development: Secondment

Preet Kaur Gill: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, pursuant to the Answer of 25 March 2019 to Question 234782, how many of the 74 staff already deployed were from each team within her Department.

Harriett Baldwin: Roles and matches are provisional and subject to change as the needs of departments shift. Overall the broad split of matched and deployed DFID staff is:DirectorateCorporate Performance Group Economic Development and InternationalCountry ProgrammesPolicy Research and Humanitarian Indicative % of total matched and deployed staff12%28%29%31%It should be noted that DFID regularly moves resources between directorate areas, therefore this may not be indicative of an actual reduction in staffing in any given area.All potential matches are made following the core principle of protecting essential DFID business.

Poverty

Danielle Rowley: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether the full report of the UK's Voluntary National Review of its progress on meeting the Sustainable Development Goals will include an assessment of the effect of the Government's domestic and international policies on reducing economic inequality (a) domestically and (b) globally.

Harriett Baldwin: The UK’s forthcoming Voluntary National Review (VNR) will take stock of the UK’s contribution to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), at home and abroad, since they were agreed in 2015. It will highlight the areas where the UK is performing well and also identify the areas where we need to further reinforce our efforts. The VNR will cover all 17 Goals, including Goal 10 (reduce inequality within and among countries), and will demonstrate the UK’s domestic and international activity. It will be underpinned by data, to ensure it is robust and credible.

Poverty

Danielle Rowley: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, whether the full report of the UK's Voluntary National Review on its progress towards meeting the Sustainable Development Goals will include an assessment of how the Government is working to address inequality between countries.

Harriett Baldwin: In July, the UK will present a Voluntary National Review (VNR) to the United Nations, setting out the UK’s contribution to achieving the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), at home and abroad. The report will include how the Government is supporting delivery of Goal 10 (reduce inequality within and among countries). The UK’s commitment to Leave No-one Behind means ensuring the inclusion of the poorest and most marginalised people. Furthermore, DFID’s Data Disaggregation Action Plan and Inclusive Data Charter Action Plan set out our goal to increase the level of disaggregated data we collect, report and use to ensure a deeper understanding of who is at risk of being left behind, where they are, and why.

Abortion

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, if she will make a commitment to support abortion rights throughout the world.

Harriett Baldwin: The UK leads the world in our long-term support for comprehensive sexual and reproductive health and rights, including safe abortion. Research shows that restricting access to abortion services does not make abortions less common – it only serves to make them less safe, risking women’s and girls’ health and lives through dangerous, backstreet abortions. At least 8% of maternal deaths worldwide are caused by unsafe abortions. Millions more women and girls are left with injuries and disabilities as a result. The UK’s position is that safe abortion reduces recourse to unsafe abortion and thus saves lives, and that women and adolescent girls must have the right to make their own decisions about their sexual and reproductive health and well-being. We will continue to uphold our evidence-based approach to women’s health services, including – as permitted within local laws – supporting safe abortion.

Libya: Minority Groups

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what financial assistance her Department is providing to people from the Tawerga community that have been displaced outside Libya.

Harriett Baldwin: The UK’s provision of humanitarian support inside and outside Libya is based on the needs of affected populations rather than targeted at particular communities. The displaced Tawerga community is included within a range of UK interventions. Our contributions to the UN’s general budget help to fund the work of the UN High Commission for Refugees, which is supporting Tawergans who remain displaced. Through the European Union Emergency Trust Fund for Africa, we are enabling the International Organisation for Migration to provide assistance to those able to return home. Through the Conflict Stability and Security Fund, the UK is supporting the Stabilisation Facility for Libya and projects on mine risk education, both of which are working with the Tawerga community.

Libya: Minority Groups

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what recent assessment she has made of the levels of persecution of the Tawerga community in Libya.

Harriett Baldwin: The UK has regularly raised the displacement of the Tawerga community with interlocutors in Libya. From June 2018 many displaced Tawergans have been able to return to their hometown. However others have continued to undergo forced eviction and arbitrary detention, highlighted by the UN statement of 10 August 2018. UK programmes in Libya are designed to improve security, advance reconciliation and meet the humanitarian needs of all vulnerable and displaced communities, including the Tawerga.

Developing Countries: Maternal Mortality

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to disseminate and implement the results of the Woman trial which found tranexamic acid has significant impact on reducing maternal mortality.

Penny Mordaunt: DFID works to improve maternal health through our focus on effective family planning, training health workers to manage obstetric emergencies and improving countries’ health systems. The Woman trial, carried out by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, has shown that the drug tranexamic acid reduces bleeding and death from post-partum haemorrhage. We have disseminated these findings to our staff in countries. We are in discussion with some of our UN and NGO partners to identify the barriers to people accessing tranexamic acid.

Developing Countries: Maternal Mortality

Dan Carden: To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what steps her Department is taking to reduce maternal mortality.

Penny Mordaunt: Every year, the UK spends approximately £1 billion on reproductive, maternal, new-born and child health care.The majority of maternal deaths are caused by complications during and following pregnancy and childbirth, such as severe bleeding, infections, complications from delivery and unsafe abortion. DFID works to reduce maternal mortality through a range of programmes, which focus on effective family planning, training health workers to manage obstetric emergencies and improving countries’ health systems to ensure health workers, drugs, equipment and transport are available when women and children need care.

Department for Education

Department for Education: Political Impartiality

Sir John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to the political impartiality of civil servants in his Department.

Anne Milton: The civil servants in my department are bound by the standards of behaviour, including that of political impartiality, as set out in the 'Civil Service code', available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-code. These are clearly communicated to all civil servants in the department on a regular basis.

Education: Parents

Sir John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if his Department will take steps to ensure parents are able to make choices on (a) schools, (b) curriculum and (c) other parts of their children's education.

Nick Gibb: Since 2010, 921,000 school places have been created and the Government is on track to increase that to a million by the end of this decade. England has a diverse school system, with a range of schools including academies, free schools, faith schools, university technical colleges, and, in some areas, selective schools.Parents are able to express at least three preferences when applying for a school place for their child and in some areas they can select six. The vast majority of parents will be allocated a place at one of their preference schools. In 2018, 91.0% were offered their first choice of primary school and 97.7% received offers from one of their top three, while 82.1% were offered their first choice of secondary school and 93.8% received offers from one of their top three.Parents also have an element of choice around the curriculum their child will follow, such as when their child chooses which qualifications they will work towards during Key Stage 4. In addition, the diverse range of schools available means there are some differences in the curricula they offer. For example, academies and free schools have the freedom to determine their own curriculum, tailored to meet the needs of the pupils, as long as the curriculum is broad and balanced.

Special Educational Needs: North of England

Sir Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether he has plans to allocated additional funding to pupils with special education needs at school in the north of England.

Nadhim Zahawi: In December 2018, we announced that we would allocate an additional £250 million in funding for pupils with complex special educational needs across England, across the financial years 2018-19 and 2019-20. This funding is in addition to the increases we had already promised. Local authorities in the North East, North West, and Yorkshire and the Humber will receive £67.7 million of this funding. The allocation to each local authority can be found at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/high-needs-funding-arrangements-2019-to-2020. We will also, of course, take the opportunity of the next Spending Review to ensure that we make a strong case for the public funds that enable schools to make provision for their children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities.

English Baccalaureate

Sir John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what progress has been achieved in increasing the take-up of the English Baccalaureate.

Nick Gibb: The Government responded to the consultation on implementing the English Baccalaureate (EBacc) in July 2017. Schools will have been able to take account of this in GCSE entries from 2020 onwards. The proportion of pupils taking the EBacc subject combination has increased from 22% in 2010 to 38% in 2018. The Department has seen significant increases in pupils taking EBacc science, from 63% to 96%, since 2010. The Department has also seen the proportion of pupils taking history or geography increase from 48% to 78%. Whilst the proportion of pupils taking GCSE languages has increased since 2010, the Department would like to see more pupils taking the subject and have launched initiatives to support this, such as the Modern Foreign Languages hub pedagogy programme.

Apprentices

Sir John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps his Department is taking to meet its target of delivering 3 million apprenticeships; and what the timeframe is to meet that target.

Anne Milton: ​In 2015 we set an ambitious goal of 3 million apprenticeships by 2020, and that remains our ambition but we will not sacrifice quality to get there.We have introduced a wide range of reforms to apprenticeships to improve their quality and encourage employers across England to increase the number of apprenticeships they offer.New apprenticeship standards across all levels are being designed and driven by industry to give apprentices the skills that businesses really need. Over 420 standards are available for employers to use, and we can see that employers are moving quickly to this new higher-quality offer. During the first half of 2018/19, nearly 60% of starts were on the new standards.We are supporting employers to make the long-term, sustainable investment in training which will generate more apprenticeship starts. We have halved the co-investment rate from 10% to 5% for new starts from April 2019, to ease the cost of apprenticeship training for smaller employers. Later this month we will increase the amount that levy paying employers can transfer to other employers from 10% to 25%.​In addition, our new communication campaign, ‘Fire It Up’, is supporting our ambition to expand apprenticeships so that even more people can benefit from the long-term opportunities they provide.

Apprentices: Finance

Ben Bradley: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, if he will ensure that apprenticeships of all levels including levels (a) 6 and (b) 7 will continue to be eligible for apprenticeship levy funding.

Anne Milton: We are pleased that employers are choosing to move to new, higher-quality apprenticeship standards. Employers are designing higher-level apprenticeships that take longer, require more off-the-job training and as a result cost more, and that presents longer-term financial challenges. We continue to make funding available for apprenticeships at all levels, including levels 6 and 7. We will keep our funding policy under review in order to ensure that apprenticeships continue to be affordable and offer value for money for the taxpayer. In 2019-20, funding available for investment in apprenticeships will have increased to over £2.5 billion, double what was spent in 2010.

Sex and Relationship Education

Richard Graham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what representations he has received on the updated guidelines on relationships and sex education.

Nick Gibb: The Department conducted a consultation on the draft regulations, statutory guidance and regulatory impact assessment for relationships education, relationships and sex education and health education between July and November 2018.The Department was contacted by over 40,000 individuals and organisations during the consultation process. Prior to the consultation, the key decisions were informed by a thorough engagement process. The public call for evidence received over 23,000 responses and the Department engaged directly with 90 organisations, including parents, young people, headteachers, teachers, governors, subject specialists, teaching unions, charities and faith groups.The Government response to the call for evidence can be found here: https://consult.education.gov.uk/pshe/relationships-education-rse-health-education/supporting_documents/180718%20Consultation_call%20for%20evidence%20response_policy%20statement.pdf.The Government response to the consultation can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/relationships-and-sex-education-and-health-education.

Education: Finance

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of education funding in England.

Nick Gibb: The Department frequently reviews the adequacy of funding across its sectors. An additional £1.3 billion has been invested in schools across 2018/19 and 2019/20, over and above the allocations set out at the last Spending Review. £7 billion will be invested in further education and skills this year alone to make sure there is an education or training place for every 16 to 19-year old who wants one, and a major review of post-18 education and funding is underway. The Spending Review presents an opportunity for the Department to comprehensively review its spending. The Department is committed to working with the Treasury to understand what resources the education sector needs over the coming years, and to securing the right deal for education.

Languages: Curriculum

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the provision for modern foreign language lessons in schools.

Nick Gibb: The reformed National Curriculum makes it compulsory for pupils in maintained schools to be taught a foreign language in Key Stage 2, and the English Baccalaureate performance measure, which includes languages, has seen the proportion of GCSE entries from pupils in state-funded schools in a modern foreign language (MFL) increase from 40% in 2010 to 46% in 2018.Ofsted's survey of Key Stage 3, published in September 2015, found that of 51 routine inspections carried out during June and July 2015, achievement was not good enough in just under half of Modern Foreign Languages (MFL) classes observed.[1]The Teaching Schools Council review of MFL pedagogy at Key Stages 3 and 4, conducted in 2016, focussed on how foreign languages are taught, and made a number of recommendations.[2]Based on these recommendations, the Government is providing £4.8 million for the MFL Hubs programme, the aim of which is to improve access to high quality MFL subject teaching. The Department has also funded nine projects across the country to provide continuing professional development for primary and secondary teachers. [1] https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/459830/Key_Stage_3_the_wasted_years.pdf.[2] https://www.tscouncil.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/MFL-Pedagogy-Review-Report-2.pdf.

First Aid: Curriculum

David Simpson: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether he plan to introduce first aid to the national curriculum.

Nick Gibb: The Government wants all young people to be happy, healthy and safe; equipping them for adult life and to make a positive contribution to society. That is why we are making Relationships Education compulsory for all primary pupils, and Relationships and Sex Education compulsory for all secondary pupils from September 2020.The updated draft guidance sets out that as part of health education, primary school pupils will be taught how to make a clear and efficient call to the emergency services and basic first aid, for example dealing with common injuries including head injuries. Secondary school pupils will build on the primary level knowledge. They will be taught how to administer CPR at an appropriate age, what a defibrillator is and when it should be used. The updated draft guidance can be accessed via the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/relationships-and-sex-education-and-health-education.

Students: Loans

Ian Austin: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he is taking to ensure that maintenance loans are available to all students.

Chris Skidmore: Eligible full-time students attending full-time undergraduate higher education courses qualify for maintenance loans. All such students, regardless of their income, qualify for a minimum loan with additional support for disadvantaged students.For the current academic year, 2018/19, students on family incomes of £25,000 or less who are living away from the parental home and studying outside London qualify for a maintenance loan of £8,700, increasing to £8,944 for the 2019/20 academic year. Higher rates of loan are available for students living away from home and studying in London.Since August 2018, new students attending part-time degree level courses have also qualified for partially means-tested maintenance loans. Information on student support for undergraduate students, including maintenance loans, can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/get-undergraduate-student-loan.The government’s review of post-18 education and funding is looking at how we can ensure that the education system for those aged 18 years and over is accessible to all. The review’s focus includes how disadvantaged students and learners receive maintenance support, both from government and from universities and colleges.

Schools: Admissions

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he has taken to conduct a review of school admissions policy; and what plans he has to do so in future.

Nick Gibb: The admissions system works well and the vast majority of parents will be allocated a place at one of their preference schools. In 2018, 91.0% were offered their first choice primary school and 97.7% received offers from one of their top 3, while 82.1% were offered their first choice secondary school and 93.8% received offers from one of their top 3.We are not complacent and want to continue to ensure fair access to a good school place for every pupil. That is why we routinely keep the admissions system under review and seek feedback from stakeholders on the health of the system.As announced in the Home Office Domestic Abuse White Paper, we are currently considering whether changes to the School Admissions Code would be helpful in supporting the admission of the most vulnerable pupils.

Apprentices: Taxation

Frank Field: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what estimate he has made of (a) the contribution to the public purse of, (b) the funding allocated to and (c)  the funding unspent from the apprenticeship levy in the last 12 months.

Anne Milton: The apprenticeship levy is collected by Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC) from all UK employers with a pay bill above £3 million. Monthly receipts data for the apprenticeship levy is published by HMRC in its tax and National Insurance contributions receipts publication which can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/hmrc-tax-and-nics-receipts-for-the-uk.Between April 2018 and February 2019, £2.5 billion was raised from the levy.Employers’ levy funds are distinct from the Department for Education’s ring-fenced apprenticeship budget, which is set to fund apprenticeships in England only. The budget has been set in advance by Her Majesty’s Treasury for the current spending review period (to 2019-20). The budget was £2.2 billion for the 2018-19 financial year and it will rise to over £2.5 billion in 2019-20 – double what was spent in 2010. It is used to fund new apprenticeship starts in levy and non-levy paying employers and to cover the ongoing costs of apprentices that are already in training. A detailed breakdown of spending for 2018-19 will be published in the Education and Skills Funding Agency Annual Report and Accounts.In the 12 months from February 2018 to January 2019, the most recent month for which data are available, £2.36 billion in levy funds were received into employers’ apprenticeship service accounts. These funds are available for employers to use for 24 months before they begin to expire on a rolling, month-by-month basis. In the same time period, a total of £523 million of payments were made from apprenticeship service accounts to cover training costs for learning. This figure does not include other costs, such as incentives and additional payments for disadvantaged apprentices.We don’t anticipate that all levy-payers will use all the funds in their accounts. Income from the levy is also used to fund apprenticeship training for non-levy paying employers.

Pupils: Secondary Education

Lucy Powell: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, pursuant to the Answer of 9 April 2019 to Question 241041 on Pupils, how many secondary school children moved schools in-year in the last academic year.

Nick Gibb: The information is not readily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Public Sector: Redundancy Pay

Angela Rayner: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, with reference to the Treasury's press release entitled Six-figure taxpayer-funded public sector exit payments to end published on 10 April 2019, how many exit payments of more than £100,000 were made by (a) academy trusts and (b) your Department for its agencies and public bodies for which it is responsible in 2016-17; and what the total cost to the public purse was of exit payments made by academy trusts in that period.

Anne Milton: ​The were 2 exit payments over £100,000 made by academy trusts in the year ended 31 August 2017. There were no payments over £100,000 made by the department and its agencies in the year ended 31 March 2017. There were 17 payments over £100,000 made by the one of the department’s public bodies in the year ended 31 March 2017. These were due to a restructure exercise that was undertaken. The total cost of exit packages made by academy trusts in the year ended 31 August 2017 was £63.7 million.

Teachers: Discrimination

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps he has taken to ensure the protection of teachers with disabilities from discrimination.

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what safeguards are in place in the Teach First programme to protect teachers with disabilities from discrimination.

Mrs Emma Lewell-Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the adequacy of the support provided to teachers with Dyspraxia.

Nick Gibb: The Equality Act (2010) provides a single, consolidated source of anti-discrimination law, covering all the types of discrimination that are unlawful. In England and Wales, the Act applies to all maintained and independent schools, including academies, and non-maintained special schools. To support schools in ensuring they comply with the provisions of the Act, we published ‘The Equality Act (2010): advice for schools’ in February 2013. Teach First is committed to ensuring that all candidates and participants are treated fairly - irrespective of disability, gender, sexual orientation, age, race, religion or any other factor. Teach First looks for teaching potential in all candidates. Identifying information of candidates is removed from the screening process and recruiters are trained to avoid unconscious bias. Teach First encourages applications from candidates with disabilities and provides any additional support needed during training alongside their placement school and university partners.

Ministry of Justice

Offences against Children: Convictions

Sir John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many convictions there have been under legislation prohibiting (a) extreme (b) violent and (c) child pornography in each year for which information is available.

Rory Stewart: Convictions for offences involving extreme, violent and child pornography can be found in the Principle offence proceedings and outcomes by Home Office offence code data tool:https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/738814/HO-Code-Tool-2017.xlsx Select the following offences in the Offence code filter: Extreme pornography offences – 8611, 8612, 8613, 8614, 8616Child pornography offences - 7108, 7109, 7110, 7111, 7113, 7116, 8615 For each group of offences, the number of convictions for each year can be found in the Convicted row (row 30). ‘Extreme’ and ‘violent’ pornography offences are indistinguishable from each other and fall under the grouping of ‘extreme pornography offences’.

Offenders: Electronic Tagging

Mary Glindon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 28 March 2019 to Question 234706 on Offenders: Electronic Tagging, how many monitoring starts under the existing monitoring scheme there have been in each of the last five years.

Edward Argar: The Ministry of Justice has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Offenders: Electronic Tagging

Mary Glindon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 28 March 2019 to Question 234706 on Offenders: Electronic Tagging, who the decision-makers will be that will apply the necessary reasonableness, proportionality and necessity tests for use of the 1,000 GPS tags available at any one time.

Edward Argar: The Ministry of Justice has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Offenders: Electronic Tagging

Mary Glindon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 28 March 2019 to Question 234706 on Offenders: Electronic Tagging, whether new policy guidelines will be issued to assist decision makers on deciding which offenders will be given GPS tags.

Edward Argar: The Ministry of Justice has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Personal Independence Payment: Appeals

Marsha De Cordova: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the average clearance time has been for personal independence payment appeals at tribunal in (a) Battersea and (b) nationally in each of the last five years for which data is available.

Edward Argar: The Ministry of Justice has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Crimes of Violence: Retail Trade

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his department has made an assessment of the potential merits of introducing tougher sanctions for people attacking shop workers.

Rory Stewart: Everyone has the right to feel safe at work and assaults on shop workers are unacceptable. There are a range of offences someone can be convicted of if they assault a shop worker. Maximum penalties for offences are set by Parliament and include five years’ custody for assault occasioning actual bodily harm and life imprisonment for the most serious cases of causing grievous bodily harm. There are no plans to increase sentences for assault offences. When making sentencing decisions the courts must follow any relevant sentencing guidelines, produced by the independent Sentencing Council. The Overarching Principles: Seriousness Guideline and Assault Guideline require the court to treat the fact that an offence was committed against those working in the public sector or providing a service to the public as an aggravating factor, making the offence more serious. The Sentencing Council is reviewing its guidelines on assault and a consultation on a revised guideline is anticipated later this year. On the 5th April the Home Office launched a call for evidence on violence and abuse towards shop staff. The aim of this work is to strengthen our understanding of the issue, including how existing legislation is being applied. The National Retail Crime Steering Group will continue to provide input on tackling this issue.

Personal Independence Payment: Appeals

Marsha De Cordova: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how much has been spent from the public purse on the administration of personal independent payment appeal tribunals in each year since 2013.

Edward Argar: The information requested is not held centrally. The cost of Personal Independence Payment and Employment and Support Allowance hearings is included in the overall cost of the First-tier Tribunal (Social Security and Child Support Appeal).

Legal Aid Agency: Debts

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, whether his Department has plans to ensure the Legal Aid Agency provides individuals with annual statements of the amount they owe to the Agency.

Edward Argar: Annual statements are produced for all individuals who owe a debt to the Legal Aid Agency which is secured by way of the statutory charge.

Legal Aid Agency: Debts

Grant Shapps: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what assessment his Department has made of the potential merits of reducing the daily rate of interest charged by the Legal Aid Agency to individuals who owe that Agency money.

Edward Argar: Where legally aided clients successfully gain or retain an asset as a result of the publicly funded legal assistance they receive, they should repay the cost of their legal aid. The rate in the statutory charge is currently set at 8%, the same as the Judgment Debt Interest Rate. It was reviewed in 2008/09.

Probation: Private Sector

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 4 April 2019 to Question 238275 on Probation: Private Sector, what estimate he has made of the cost to his Department of probation services in each year between 2010 and 2015.

Rory Stewart: The total amount spent by the Ministry of Justice on probation services in England and Wales for the years requested is set out in a summary table below.Financial YearsProbation Expenditure, nominal*2014/15£851,700,0002013/14£804,500,0002012/13£832,400,0002011/12£819,800,0002010/11£874,600,000*Figures have been rounded and show actual costs The expenditure prior to 2014/15 is for Probation Boards and Trusts. From 2014/15 onwards, responsibility for providing probation services transferred to the new National Probation Service (NPS) and 21 Community Rehabilitation Companies (CRCs). The cost increase in 2014/15 was for transition and mobilisation costs of setting up the NPS and CRCs, as well as closing down Probation Trusts, as part of the Transforming Rehabilitation reforms.

Sexual Offences: Victims

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the answer to Question 241031, whether victims includes people for whom prosecution has failed; and at what point in that process people become victims.

Edward Argar: The Government is committed to ensuring that victims of crime have access to the support services they need to help them cope with and, as far as possible, recover from the effects of crime. In accordance with the Victims’ Code, a person is entitled to support if they have suffered harm, including physical, mental or emotional harm or economic loss, which was directly caused by a criminal offence. They are entitled to access victim support services at any time, whether they have reported a crime or not, and after the conclusion of the investigation and prosecution, regardless of whether anyone has been charged or convicted of a criminal offence.

Sexual Offences: Victims

Chi Onwurah: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, pursuant to the Answer of 9 April 2019 to Question 241031 on Sexual Offences: Victims, for how long are victims supported by these services.

Edward Argar: The Government is committed to ensuring that victims of crime have access to the support services they need to help them cope with and, as far as possible, recover from the effects of crime. The length and type of support provided will vary to meet individual needs. Victims may re-enter services at any point in their life. In addition to face-to-face support, a victim may also be offered telephone or online counselling or access to peer support groups should these services better meet their needs. In April this year we awarded increased funding to sexual violence support services – up to £8m per year and £24m over three years to help these services offer advice, support and counselling to more victims of these appalling crimes.

Squatting: Sentencing

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many people have been given an custodial sentence for squatting in each year since 2012.

Edward Argar: Data for the offence of squatting, including the number of custodial sentences imposed since 2013, can be found in the Experimental Statistics: Proceedings and Outcomes by Home Office Code data tool which is available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/criminal-justice-system-statistics-quarterly-december-2017. Filter the ‘Detailed offence’ to ‘Knowingly as a trespasser live/intend to live in residential building’.

Prisons: Construction

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what plans he has to devolve the operation of building contracts in prisons to (a) Governors and (b) the appointees of Governors.

Edward Argar: There are currently no plans to devolve building contractual work to individual prison governors, or their appointees.  .

G4S and Serco: Contracts

Richard Burgon: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what the value is of all current contracts agreed by his Department and (a) G4S and (b) Serco.

Edward Argar: The value of contracts that the Ministry of Justice (MoJ) has with (a) G4S and (b) Serco are as follows:(a) G4S:Five contracts as a direct supplier totalling £961,685,342Contract Main ContractorContract Start DateContract End Date Total Contract ValueTotal Facilities Management Work Package A - HMCTS Wales, Midlands, NE, NW, Newbold Revel, MoJ Shared Service CentreG4S Integrated Services (UK) Limited01/02/201231/10/2019£174,724,495Contract for the Provision of a Custodial Service at HMP BirminghamG4S Care and Justice Services (UK) Ltd13/04/2011Was: 30/09/26 Revised: 30.06.19£419,031,097Provision of Custodial Services at HMP OakwoodG4S Care and Justice Services (UK) Ltd13/04/201123/04/2027£330,429,750Provision of Electronic Monitoring Hardware (Business as Usual)G4S Monitoring Technologies Ltd04/11/201603/11/2019£15,000,000Contract to supply electronic monitoring services, including related infrastructure, firmware and software,G4S Monitoring Technologies Ltd10/11/201709/09/2021£22,500,000 *This was the full contract award value for HMP Birmingham. This contract is being terminated in June 2019 and HMP Birmingham is returning to public sector management. There are also four contracts where G4S are the operator but the direct contract relationship is with a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) under PFI contracts totalling £3,740,096,934ContractOperated ByContract Start DateContract End Date Total Contract ValueHMP AltcourseG4S Care and Justice Services01/12/199731/05/2023£1,213,636,422HMP ParcG4S Justice Services15/12/199714/12/2022£1,534,747,827HMP Rye HillG4S Justice Services21/01/200120/01/2026£520,112,727Oakhill Secure Training CentreG4S Justice Services18/08/200426/06/2029£471,600,000 (b) Serco Three contracts as a direct supplier totalling £601,025,934ContractMain ContractorContract Start DateContract End Date Total Contract ValueFacilities Lease with Sport England - Clayton HallSerco20/03/199119/03/2041£11,250,000Provision of the Prisoner Escort and Custody ServiceSerco29/08/201128/08/2020£307,928,119Contract for the Provision of a Custodial Service at HMP and YOI DoncasterSerco13/04/201130/09/2026£281,847,815 There are also four contracts where Serco are the operator but the direct contract relationship is with a Special Purpose Vehicle (SPV) as these are PFI contracts totalling £2,967,841,973TitleOperated ByContract Start DateContract End Date Total Contract ValueHMP ThamesideSerco30/03/201221/12/2036£937,000,000HMP AshfieldSerco01/11/199931/10/2024£332,634,326HMP DovegateSerco09/07/200108/07/2026£1,011,462,320HMP Lowdham GrangeSerco16/02/199815/02/2023£686,745,327   The MoJ regards well-managed contracts as fundamental to the proper functioning of the justice system, and a vital part of court and prison reform plans. The provision of services by contractors plays an important role in the Criminal Justice System and relevant action will be taken to ensure this service. The MoJ holds providers rigorously to account for their performance and takes action wherever they are falling short. Our contract management teams closely monitor and robustly manage providers to make sure they fulfil their contractual commitments to maintain service delivery. Since January 2011, details of central government contracts above the value of £10,000 are published on Contracts Finder. Contracts published prior to 26 February 2015 can be viewed at: https://data.gov.uk/data/contracts-finder-archive Those published after 26 February 2015 can be viewed at: https://www.contractsfinder.service.gov.uk/Search

Personal Independence Payment: Appeals

Ms Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, how many of the personal independence payment appeals to the First Tier Tribunal in that were cleared without a hearing were (a) withdrawn, (b) struck out and (c) superseded in (i) Quarter 1 and (ii) Quarter 2 in 2018-19.

Edward Argar: Information about outcomes for Personal Independence Payment (PIP) appeals to the First-tier Tribunal (Social Security and Child Support) (SSCS) is published at:www.gov.uk/government/collections/tribunals-statistics.  The specific information requested is in the table below.BenefitOutcome TypeQuarter 1 (April to June) 2018/19pQuarter 2 (July to September) 2018/19pPIP1Withdrawn895839Struck out2032Superseded2,4703,749PIP was introduced in April 2013 and replaced Disability Living Allowance p Provisional data subject to change  An SSCS appeal may be captured more than once as a hearing or non-hearing clearance should the original decision be overturned, set aside or an Upper Tribunal re-hearing is granted. Although care is taken when processing and analysing the data, the details are subject to inaccuracies inherent in any large- scale case management system and are the best data that are available. Latest figures (to December 2018) indicate that since PIP was introduced, 3.9 million decisions have been made, and of these 10% have been appealed and 5% have been overturned at tribunals.

Roads: Accidents

Ellie Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Justice, what recent assessment he has made of the merits of exempting road users injured in the course of their employment from the measures contained within the Civil Liability Act.

Edward Argar: The Ministry of Justice has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Department for International Trade

Ceramics: Overseas Trade

Ruth Smeeth: To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, with reference to the Trade Barriers (Revocation) (EU Exit) Regulations 2018, what mechanisms exist for the UK ceramic industry to secure departmental action on any market access problems experienced in overseas markets.

George Hollingbery: The Government has established a dedicated market access team within the Department for International Trade to improve how market access barriers experienced by UK exporters are identified and tackled. In addition to the usual engagement channels and regular dialogues between the Government and the ceramic industry, we will have a dedicated form through the gov.uk website where businesses will be able to report market access barriers they face. This will be available shortly.

Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government

Housing: Young People

Sir John Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department is taking to help young people to get on the housing ladder.

Jake Berry: The Government is committed to building a housing market which works for everyone. We recognise that for too many people home-ownership is affordable. Addressing this affordability challenge requires building the homes our country needs. That is why we intend to deliver 300,000 homes per year, the largest annual increase in housing supply since the 1970s.Since 2010, over half a million households have been helped to purchase a home through government backed schemes including Help to Buy and Right to Buy. The recent Evaluation of Help to Buy: Equity Loan from 2015 to 2017 found that 63 per cent of first-time buyers benefiting from the scheme were under 35 years old.Building on this, the 2017 Autumn Budget announced a new stamp duty land tax relief benefiting 95 per cent of first time buyers who pay it – over 18,500 have been helped so far.

Gardens

Damien Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what estimate the English Housing Survey has made of the number and proportion of dwellings that have gardens.

Damien Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what the average plot size is of a (a) detached and (b) semi-detached house with a garden according to information held by (i) his Department and (ii) the Valuation Office Agency.

Kit Malthouse: MHCLG’s English Housing Survey records details relating to the land immediately surrounding a dwelling, referred to as the dwelling’s plot. The plot may be private (i.e. exclusive access) or shared (e.g. where a block of flats have a shared garden). The plot may consist of hard landscaping (e.g. concrete, tarmac, paving, gravel), soft landscaping (e.g. lawn, flower/vegetable beds), or a combination.In 2016, the latest year for which data are available, 83 per cent of homes (19.7 million dwellings) in England had private plots; 1 per cent (296,000) had a shared plot (ref: Annex Table 1.5: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/english-housing-survey-2016-stock-condition).In 2016, the average private plot size was 275.6m2(ref: Annex Table 1.5: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/english-housing-survey-2016-stock-condition). The department does not regularly publish data on plot size, by dwelling type. The Valuation Office Agency does not hold complete data on plot sizes for domestic properties and is therefore unable to determine the average plot size for detached and semi-detached properties.

Gardens

Damien Moore: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what steps his Department has taken since May 2010 to tackle garden grabbing and protect residential gardens.

Rishi Sunak: In June 2010 the Government removed domestic gardens in built-up areas from the definition of ‘brownfield’ land. This strengthened the discretion of local authorities to refuse intrusive new dwellings on residential garden land. We retained that policy when we revised the National Planning Policy Framework in June 2018. This does not impose a complete ban on the use of redundant garden land for housing. We expect local authorities to consider what is the appropriate density for a residential area, to resist inappropriate development, and to ensure green infrastructure is maintained in built-up areas.

Right to Buy Scheme: Lancashire

Sir Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many house sales were made by people that used the Right to Buy scheme in Lancashire since the scheme was introduced.

Jake Berry: The Department publishes the number of Right to Buy Sales by local authority area from 1979-80, when the scheme began, to 2017-18 in Live Table 685, which can be found at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-social-housing-sales.Information on Right to Buy sales in the three quarters of 2018-19 are published in Live Table 691 at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/live-tables-on-social-housing-sales. Please note these figures are only provisional.Note that 2017-18 sales figures in Live Table 685 and 691 do not match. This is because Live Table 691 is revised quarterly while 685 is done annually. It is therefore advised to use the figures in 691

Private Rented Housing: Evictions

Ellie Reeves: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of Section 21 of the Housing Act 1988.

Rishi Sunak: The Government is committed to modernising the private rented sector and intends to introduce a new, fairer deal for both landlords and tenants.As part of this new deal, the Government will put an end to ‘no-fault’ evictions by repealing section 21 of the Housing Act 1988. Under new proposals, a tenant cannot be evicted from their home without good reason, providing tenants with more stability, and enabling them to put down roots and plan for the future.We also plan to strengthen the Section 8 possession process to ensure landlords have confidence they will be able to end tenancies where they have legitimate reason to do so, such as selling or moving into the property themselves.We will launch a consultation on the details of a better system that will work for landlords and tenants. Ministers will also work with other types of housing providers outside of the private rented sector who use these powers, and use the consultation to make sure the new system works effectively.

Parish Councils: Council Tax

Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of imposing a threshold on rises in parish council precepts; and if he will make a statement.

Rishi Sunak: In 2018, the Secretary of State announced an intention not to set council tax referendum principles for town and parish councils in the three financial years from 2018-19 to 2020-21. This was subject to them limiting any precept increases wherever possible. In view of the restraint shown in precept increases for 2018-19, no referendum thresholds were set for parishes in 2019-20. The Secretary of State determines referendum principles each year, and will take into account precept increases when making decisions for future years.

First-tier Tribunal: Freehold

Mr Laurence Robertson: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will make it his policy to enable freeholders to access First Tier Tribunals (property chamber); and if he will make a statement.

Mrs Heather Wheeler: The Government has committed to ensuring that freeholders who pay charges for the maintenance of communal areas and facilities on a private or mixed tenure estate can access equivalent rights as leaseholders to challenge their reasonableness.We intend to create a new statutory regime for freeholders based on the leaseholder rights contained in the Landlord and Tenant Act 1985. This will ensure maintenance charges must be reasonably incurred and services provided are of an acceptable standard. We will provide freeholders with the ability to challenge the reasonableness of the charges they are required to pay towards the maintenance of communal areas and facilities at the First-tier Tribunal. We are also considering whether freeholders should have a right to change the provider of maintenance services by applying to the tribunal for the appointment of a new manager. We will bring forward legislation as soon as Parliamentary time allows.

Housing: Oxfordshire

Layla Moran: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 20 March to Question 234843 on Housing: Oxfordshire, what steps his Department has taken with the Department for Transport, to ensure that sustainable transport carried through from stage one to stage two of the bidding process for Housing Infrastructure Fund Forward Funding Bids.

Jake Berry: Following the submission of expressions of interest to the Housing Infrastructure Fund the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government and the Department for Transport worked with Oxfordshire County Council to develop their bids.It was then for Oxfordshire County Council to determine which strategic, high-impact infrastructure interventions, that will unlock housing, to include in their final business cases.I am delighted that the government recently awarded Oxfordshire County Council £218 million of funding from the Housing Infrastructure Fund for the Access to Didcot Garden Town scheme that includes improving cycling provision.

Anti-Muslim Hatred Working Group

Dr Rupa Huq: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what the annual budget is for the Anti-Muslim Hatred Working Group; and whether members of that group receive remuneration.

Rishi Sunak: The Working Group has not had an operational budget since its inception however going forward it will be supported to undertake some of its activities in working with communities. Members do not receive remuneration and undertake their roles on a voluntary basis.

Anti-Muslim Hatred Working Group

Dr Rupa Huq: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, how many women have applied to become members of Anti-Muslim Hatred Working Group (a) since it was first set up and (b) in the last 12 months.

Rishi Sunak: The AMHWG was set up in 2012. In 2018 we launched the first open recruitment process to appoint members. During this process 24 women applied to be independent members. The Working Group is led by Ms Akeela Ahmed OBE, founder of a civil society platform dedicated to amplifying women’s voices, and we have appointed Ms Asma Ali, Data Protection Officer and Solicitor for the Police Service of Scotland. Ms Iman Abou Atta is an ex-officio member, as Director of Tell MAMA.

Anti-Muslim Hatred Working Group

Dr Rupa Huq: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether an independent body is involved in the process of appointing new members of the Anti-Muslim Hatred Working Group.

Rishi Sunak: The process of appointing new members was managed by the Ministry of Housing, Communities, and Local Government.

High Rise Flats: Insulation

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether he has plans to announce a strategy for the removal of flammable cladding from privately-owned tower blocks.

Rishi Sunak: The Government’s priority is to ensure that residents of high-rise (above 18 metres) buildings with unsafe Aluminium Composite Material (ACM) cladding systems are, and feel, safe.Officials continue to engage with developers, building owners and managing agents with responsibility for buildings with unsafe ACM cladding systems to ensure they are remediated as quickly as possible. We have written to all relevant private sector building owners reminding them of their responsibilities towards making their buildings safe. This includes ensuring that leaseholders are protected from remediation costs. We have reminded building owners that local authorities have powers to enforce these improvements if building owners do not take action. A joint expert inspection team will support local authorities in ensuring and, where necessary, enforcing remediation. We have also created a taskforce, chaired by ministers, to oversee the progress of remediation.

High Rise Flats: Insulation

Mr Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi: To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what recent discussions has he had with leaseholders of blocks covered in flammable cladding whose owners are refusing to meet the cost of replacing flammable cladding.

Rishi Sunak: The Secretary of State has consistently set out his strong expectation that leaseholders should be protected from the costs of remediation. We are very concerned about the situation affected leaseholders find themselves in through no fault of their own. We are actively engaging with building owners, managing agents and leaseholders to establish where leaseholders are being asked to, or have paid for, remedial works. We are considering various options for ensuring costs are not passed on to leaseholders.

Ministry of Defence

Radioactive Waste: Dalgety Bay

Deidre Brock: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what radiation remediation works have so far been carried out at Dalgety Bay; what further works are planned ;and when the works are expected to be complete.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The Ministry of Defence, the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency and Fife Council continue to work together to implement the agreed Management Strategy for the long-term management of radium contamination at Dalgety Bay.Remediation is due to physically begin in April 2020 and be completed in September of the same year. The second phase of work is planned to begin in April 2021 and be completed in September 2021. Work cannot take place outside of these periods due to the disturbance that may be caused to wintering birds.

Brunei: Armed Forces

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what assessment he has made of the effect of Brunei’s decision to introduce stoning for LGBT people on LGBT British armed forces personnel stationed at British Forces Brunei.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: In asserting international human rights law on torture, and on cruel, inhumane or degrading treatment, and in opposing the death penalty in all circumstances and all its forms, the UK continues to raise concerns with the Government of Brunei about the introduction of hudud punishments.We are confident we have protections in place with the Government of Brunei for all British Forces, associated UK civilians and their dependants relating to issues which might arise from the introduction of the new Sharia Penal Code. All British Forces in Brunei have also been instructed to heed Foreign and Commonwealth Office travel advice.

Electronic Warfare

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, what steps he is taking to ensure that the UK is a world leader in autonomous cyber defence of military systems.

Stuart Andrew: The National Cyber Security Strategy 2016-2021 is supported by a £1.9 billion of transformational investment. It sets out ambitious policies to protect the UK in cyber space. Defence operates many Cyber defence capabilities with varying levels of automation. These systems are typically used for monitoring and defending key capabilities. New, emergent and advanced technologies are also monitored by working closely with Dstl, academia and industry partners.

HMS Prince of Wales

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether HMS Prince of Wales will (a) be ready for sea trials by the end of the calendar year and (b) delivered on budget.

Stuart Andrew: HMS Prince of Wales is structurally complete and on current plans will commence contractor sea trials later this year.The final cost of the Queen Elizabeth Class aircraft carrier programme is the subject of ongoing commercial negotiations with the Aircraft Carrier Alliance, and I am therefore withholding our current cost estimate as its disclosure at this time would be prejudicial to the commercial interests of the Ministry of Defence.

GKN: Birmingham

Richard Burden: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence,  with reference to the 2018 deed of covenant undertakings provided by Melrose Industries, whether he has plans to issue a note of concern in relation to the announcement by GKN Aerospace that it intends to close its Kings Norton plant.

Stuart Andrew: As required by the undertakings provided last year, Melrose Industries have notified the Ministry of Defence (MOD) of their intention to relocate Defence work from GKN's Kings Norton site to other GKN sites. The MOD has discussed these proposals with Melrose and is confident that the important work that GKN does for Defence will continue. The MOD understands that there will be no overall reduction in GKN's defence capacity, as the defence work is being moved, not stopped. On that basis there are no plans to issue a note of concern.

Kneller Hall: Sales

Sir Vince Cable: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will publish Ministerial Submission Ref Army/Sec/21/02/80551; and if he will make a statement on the sale of Kneller Hall.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: It is a long standing convention that advice to Ministers is not published as to do so would be likely to prohibit the free and frank provision of advice and inhibit the effective conduct of Government. Members of this House affected by the decision to vacate Kneller Hall have been informed about the future plans for it and I wrote to the right hon. Member on 28 February 2019 setting out this detail.

Nuclear Submarines: Decommissioning

Stewart Malcolm McDonald: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will make it his policy to establish a public inquiry into the handling of UK nuclear submarine decommissioning.

Stuart Andrew: We have no plans for a public inquiry.

Joint Strike Fighter Aircraft

Mr Kevan Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether he has made an assessment of the effect on the delivery of 17 F-35B fighter jets to the UK after 2020 of Turkey's potential removal from the F35 programme.

Stuart Andrew: There is no anticipated effect to the delivery of the UK's F-35B aircraft after 2020.

Royal Fleet Auxiliary: Procurement

Mr Paul Sweeney: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, whether (a) Team UK, (b) Daewoo Shipbuilding and Marine Engineering, (c) Fincantieri, (d) Navantia, and (e) Japan Marine United Corporation remain in the competition to tender for the Fleet Solid Support Ship design and build contract.

Stuart Andrew: Yes.

Veterans: Homelessness

Gareth Thomas: To ask the Secretary of State for Defence, if he will fund research into the number of former members of the armed forces who are homeless; and if he will make a statement.

Mr Tobias Ellwood: The Ministry of Defence (MOD) strongly believes that no-one should be homeless, least of all someone who has served their country. However, there is no substantive evidence to suggest that veterans are over-represented in the homeless population. As part of the recently launched Veterans Strategy the Government has made clear its commitment to tackling rough sleeping and homelessness and ensuring that all veterans have a secure place to live.We recognise that there are limited statistics on homelessness; that is the why the MOD and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government are working together to gather more comprehensive data on this issue. The Combined Homelessness and Information Network statistics suggest that 3% of the rough sleeping population in London have served in the Armed Forces and other independent research shows that the rough sleeping figures for veterans are around 3-4% across the UK. The same research shows that that an individual is less likely to be homeless if they have served in the Armed Forces.

Department for Work and Pensions

Children: Maintenance

Mary Glindon: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the consultation on changes to the collection of child maintenance arrears, launched in December 2017, how many responses her Department received, and how many of those responses opposed the proposal to write off historical arrears.

Will Quince: The consultation closed on 8 February 2018. We received a total of 99 responses, 11 from organisations and 88 from private individuals (of which 21 identified themselves as paying parents, and 24 as receiving parents). Respondents were asked 15 question, four of which discussed the proposal to write off historical arrears.Accurately assessing the number of responses opposed specifically to the proposal to write off historical arrears is not straightforward. Not all respondents chose to answer the specific questions, and a large number of responses were about individual case circumstances, and didn’t raise issues within the scope of the consultation. Of the nine responses which were focused on the scope of the consultation, four opposed the write off and three had a mixed view.The Government published a detailed response to this consultation on 12 July 2018, accessible through the link below.https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/724358/response-child-maintenance-compliance-and-arrears-strategy-consultation.pdf

Universal Credit: Croydon

Mr Steve Reed: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment she had made of the effect of the roll out of universal credit on child poverty in working families in the London borough of Croydon .

Will Quince: We have not made an assessment at this level. The best way to help people improve their lives is through employment, and people on Universal Credit move into work faster and stay in work longer. We are committed to helping the most vulnerable to improve their life chances by tackling the root causes of poverty, and ensuring that children have the best possible start in life. We want to see child poverty falling, and we remain determined to tackle it. We will look at what more can be done to help the most vulnerable and improve their life chances by tackling the root causes of poverty, ensuring that children have the best possible start in life. That is why we have recently implemented a £1000 increase in Work Allowance rates as part of a package worth £1.7 billion in 2023/24 to some of the most vulnerable low paid working families. It will increase the amount that hardworking families can earn before Universal Credit is tapered away, providing 2.4 million working families with an extra £630 a year. A child growing up in a home where all the adults work is around five times less likely to be in poverty than a home in which no one is working. It is also worth noting that absolute and relative poverty rates for children in London are lower than in 2010, on both a before and after housing cost basis.

Universal Credit

Neil Gray: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what guidance is provided to job centre staff when assessing whether a universal credit claimant can receive an advanced payment.

Alok Sharma: Comprehensive guidance on Universal Credit Advance payments is available to all staff across the Jobcentre network. This guidance is clear that it is essential that all new claimants are offered an Advance and that it is processed at the first point of contact. Applications for an advance payment can be made in person, by telephone or online depending on the claimant’s circumstances. New claimants can apply for a Universal Credit advance, worth up to 100 per cent of a claimant’s indicative award, paid within 72 hours of making a request, and can receive payment within a day if needed. Around 60% of eligible new claims to Universal Credit received an advance in February 2019. Universal Credit guidance is published in the House of Commons library and the Department is committed to refreshing this at regular intervals.

Personal Independence Payment: Lancashire

Sir Mark Hendrick: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many mandatory re-considerations have been submitted for personal independence payment claims in Lancashire in the last 12 months.

Justin Tomlinson: Between February 2018 and January 2019 there were 8,780 Mandatory Reconsiderations registered against Personal Independence Payment (PIP) Normal Rules claims for claimants living in Lancashire. This covers both new claims and DLA reassessment claims.

Universal Credit: Housing

Stephen Timms: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to ensure that universal credit adequately supports social housing tenants paying rent weekly to meet their obligations in relation to the 53 week year.

Will Quince: No year contains 53 weeks. This perceived issue of their being 53 weeks in a year arises where a landlord charges rent weekly on a Monday and, because of the way the calendar falls every 5 or 6 years, seeks 53 rent payments in a year, with the 53rd payment in part covering the tenancy for the first few days of the following year.Universal Credit payments are designed to mirror the world of work, with monthly payments reflecting the way many working people are paid. This model of monthly payments allows claimants to take responsibility for budgeting their own income and helps prepare them for getting back to work. The Money and Pension Service can provide debt advice and money guidance to claimants if they need support managing their monthly Universal Credit payments.We are aware of a separate issue with respect to the way the calculation in the Universal Credit regulations converts a weekly liability into a monthly allowance. The conversion is achieved by multiplying the weekly rent by 52 and then dividing by 12. This effectively means one day’s rent a year (two days in a leap years) are not covered by UC. We are currently considering whether this formulation around weekly rents, and potentially other weekly amounts in the UC calculation, should be amended.

Universal Credit

Ruth George: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions,  with reference to the Written Statement of 12 March on Universal Credit, HCWS1399, whether a person's legacy benefits could be terminated if they have not made a claim for universal credit during the course of the pilot.

Ruth George: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans her Department has to include an estimate of the (a) number and (b) expected number of people falling out of the social security system  and during the universal credit managed migration pilot when it reports to Parliament on that pilot.

Alok Sharma: We do not intend to stop anyone’s benefit during the pilot. In the pilot phase, our intention is to learn how to effectively assist people onto Universal Credit and to develop processes to deliver that help. This is particularly important for vulnerable and hard-to-reach claimants, who the Department will help to move across to the new system. We are piloting this approach precisely to learn how we can contact and support people to move to Universal Credit without ending their legacy entitlement.Through the pilot process we will work to understand the reasons for unsuccessful applications. However, there will be safeguards in place to protect those who might otherwise fail to make a successful claim. We will report on our findings from the pilot before bringing forward legislation to extend this process.

Universal Credit

Ruth George: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, reference to the Written Statement of 12 March on Universal Credit, HCWS1399, whether her Department plans to pay discretionary payments to cover the two-week run on for all claimants migrating to universal credit during the course of the pilot.

Alok Sharma: Subject to the Parliamentary approval, of the draft Universal Credit (Managed Migration Pilot and Miscellaneous Amendments) regulations 2019, the Department will introduce a Discretionary Hardship Payment to support those claimants who will be a part of the pilot phase and who appear to be in hardship. The power for Discretionary Hardship Payments is broad and could be used to pay the equivalent of the two-week legacy run on to claimants who will be moved to Universal Credit as part of the piloting phase and who are in hardship on account of the absence of the run on. We will also have the discretion to make payments if any other issues related to managed migration have resulted in hardship. Introducing the Discretionary Hardship Payment during the piloting phase will allow the Department to evaluate this support and assess what impact the current policy may have on claimants before introducing the run-ons from July 2020. This evaluation will allow us to consider whether further support is needed as a result of other issues that may arise and we have committed to reporting on our findings from the pilot before bringing forward legislation to proceed with volume managed migration.”

Universal Credit

Ruth George: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department will report to Parliament on its evaluation of the effect of the managed migration pilot on (a) disabled people, (b) people with mental health conditions and (c) people identified by her Department as having complex needs.

Justin Tomlinson: The Department is committed to ensuring that all claimants, especially the most vulnerable, are supported as they move and the aim of the pilot is to ensure claimants on all legacy benefits with a range of different characteristics can successfully move onto Universal Credit. All individuals involved in the pilot process will be tracked through the process and there will be safeguards in place to protect them throughout the journey.We are working closely with a diverse range of stakeholders, including those who focus on disability and mental health, so that a range of insights are played into the design of the pilot and we will work with partners to ensure we reach everyone in the most effective and supportive way, and that no-one is left behind. Learnings from the pilot will shape the future support we provide to claimants.The Department has committed to reporting its findings from the pilot to Parliament before we continue.

Employment and Support Allowance

Marsha De Cordova: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to her letter of 4 April 2019, in what time frame she will complete updating the current ESA65B letter with input from medical organisations.

Justin Tomlinson: We expect the revised version to be delivered by Summer 2019.

Personal Independence Payment: Battersea

Marsha De Cordova: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the average waiting time for a mandatory reconsideration after a personal independence payment assessment was in Battersea constituency in each of the last five years for which data is available.

Justin Tomlinson: Information on median clearance times for Personal Independence Payment (PIP) Mandatory Reconsiderations (MRs) is provided in the table below.Median Clearance Times, in Calendar Days, for PIP MRs, Normal Rules by Financial Year of MR Clearance, Battersea Parliamentary Constituency:Financial Year of MR ClearanceMedian Calendar Days for MR to be Cleared2013/14292014/15302015/16252016/17312017/18332018/19 (April 2018 - January 2019)40 Source: PIP Computer System This data on PIP MR clearance times is unpublished data. It should be used with caution and it may be subject to future revision. Measures to reduce the number of outstanding MRs include: Age profiles of outstanding work are managed at a national level to ensure that cases which have been outstanding for longest are actioned first.Resource levels dedicated to the clearance of MRs have been regularly reviewed with significant recruitment, training and redeployment undertaken to support reduced clearance times. MR is a key element of the decision making process for both the Department and claimants, and whilst ensuring they make quality decisions, decision makers work hard to clear applications without delay. Gathering the right evidence is critical at the MR stage if decisions are not to go to appeal; and we are reviewing our processes to not only obtain this, but to do so whilst continuing to make decisions timeously.

State Retirement Pensions: Reciprocal Arrangements

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, when Government last held discussions with the Governments of (a) India and (b) Pakistan on reciprocal pensions agreements; and will she make a statement.

Guy Opperman: Successive governments – Labour, Coalition and Conservative have not entered into any new reciprocal social security agreements with non-EU countries since 1992. Any requests for a new agreement would be considered carefully to ensure maximum benefit and reciprocity for both parties

Personal Independence Payment: Medical Examinations

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 4 April 2019 to Question 239270 on Personal Independence Payment: Medical Examinations, what is meant by reworked by DWP.

Justin Tomlinson: An assessment report must contain everything necessary for a decision to be made and must be:• Fair and impartial, so that it doesn’t compromise decision making• Legible and concise• In accordance with relevant legislation• Comprehensive, clearly explaining the medical issues raised, fully clarifying any contradictions in evidence• In plain English and free of medical jargon and unexplained medical abbreviations• Complete with no questions unansweredAfter consideration of the full PIP Assessment Report a DWP Case Manager (Decision Maker) will return a case to the Assessment Provider (AP) to be looked at again (rework)If any of the above criteria are not metif the correct award cannot be reasonably determined from the information in the report orif the information provided by the AP to DWP suggests there will be a change to an award/award length and there is no reasonable justification recorded, this could be to increase or decrease the award.

Personal Independence Payment: Medical Examinations

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 4 April 2019 to Question 239270 on Personal Independence Payment: Medical Examinations, for what reason claimants are not entitled to access Auditors' Reports.

Justin Tomlinson: The audit reports are a feedback tool for the Providers to ensure their Health Professionals provide good quality assessment reports. These reports are not retained under departmental destruction policy.

Personal Independence Payment: Medical Examinations

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 4 April 2019 to Question 239270 on Personal Independence Payment: Medical Examinations, what is contained within an Auditors' Report.

Justin Tomlinson: Audit refers to a comprehensive check of the elements of the assessment, including the evidence collection, further evidence provided and the assessment report completed by the Healthcare Professional. The check is completed against a set of guidelines, set out publicly in the Personal Independence Assessment Guide, to ensure a consistent approach is taken. This ensures assessment reports are adequately justified and provide sufficient information for the department’s Case Managers decisions on entitlement to benefit.

Child Maintenance Service: Complaints

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many complaints have been logged with the Child Maintenance Service for each year since 2015.

Will Quince: The latest statistics on complaints received by the Child Maintenance Service are published in Table 17 of the Child Maintenance Service statistics, which highlights the number of complaints received by the Child Maintenance Service each quarter. It is available online at: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/statistics-on-the-2012-statutory-child-maintenance-scheme

Children: Maintenance

Marion Fellows: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many open cases (a) the Child Maintenance Service, and (b) the Child Support Agency have had each year since 2015.

Will Quince: The latest statistics on the number of child maintenance arrangements managed by the Child Maintenance Service are published in Table 4 of the Child Maintenance Service: August 2013 to September 2018 (experimental) publication, available online at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/child-maintenance-service-august-2013-to-september-2018-experimental. The latest statistics on the number of cases managed by the Child Support Agency are published in Table 1 of the Child Support Agency quarterly summary of Statistics which are currently available up to December 2018.They can be accessed online at: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/child-support-agency-quarterly-summary-of-statistics-december-2018.”

Pension Credit: Wales

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the (a) number and (b) proportion of pensioners entitled to pension credit not in receipt of pension credit in each local authority area in Wales.

Guy Opperman: The information requested on the (a) number and (b) proportion of pensioners entitled to pension credit not in receipt of pension credit in each local authority area in Wales is not available.

Personal Independence Payment

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the (a) number and (b) proportion of personal independence payment (PIP) claimants who have (i) reduced their hours worked and (ii) ceased employment fully as a result of being reassessed for the lower rate of PIP mobility support.

Justin Tomlinson: No such estimate has been made. Personal Independence Payment (PIP) can be paid to disabled people irrespective of their employment status and, as such, no details of an individual’s employment status are gathered during the course of their claim or award. The majority of people reassessed from Disability Living Allowance (DLA) to PIP will continue to have their mobility needs supported through the enhanced or standard rate mobility component. People with a health condition or disability, who require additional support getting to and from work, can apply for an Access to Work grant.

Social Security Benefits: Uprating

Mr Virendra Sharma: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to The Social Security Benefits Up-rating Regulations 2019 (S.I., 2019, No. 552), for what reasons the increases in carers allowance and the policy of not uprating the pensions of 510,000 overseas UK pensioners were not provided for in separate Statutory Instruments.

Justin Tomlinson: The increase in the weekly rate of Carer’s Allowance from £64.60 to £66.15 from 8 April 2019 was provided for in The Social Security Benefits Up-rating Order 2019 (No. 480). The Up-rating Regulations 2019 contain provisions adjusting aspects of the benefit system in light of the Order, and include an increase in the weekly earnings limit in Carer’s Allowance from £120 to £123. This was to avoid the need for an additional Statutory Instrument in light of demands on Parliamentary time due to EU exit.

Universal Credit

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the cost to the public purse of removing the five-week wait for claimants of universal credit.

Alok Sharma: I refer the Hon. Member to the response provided to Question 240463, answered on 8th April 2019.

Universal Credit: Terminal Illnesses

Tim Farron: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate he she has made of the cost to the public purse of removing the five-week wait for claimants of universal credit in possession of a DS1500.

Justin Tomlinson: No claimant has to go five weeks without receiving support, as advances, worth up to 100 per cent of a claimant’s indicative award, are available up front, if there is need. Advances are paid back over a period of 12 months and in the Autumn Budget 2018, we announced that from October 2021, the payback period for these advances will be extended further, up to 16 months. This is just one of a number of measures the Department has put in place to support claimants such as paying those claimants moving from Housing Benefit onto Universal Credit a two week ‘transitional housing payment’. We are also introducing a two-week run on for eligible claimants of Income Support, Jobseeker’s Allowance and Employment and Support Allowance from July 2020. No estimate of this nature has been made as the assessment period is a necessary and crucial part of the claim procedure. Claimants receive their first payment five weeks after the point of claim because an assessment period of four weeks is needed to calculate entitlement, followed by one week of payment processing. We take terminal illness very seriously and treat people in such circumstances with the upmost speed and sensitivity. Our process for supporting people who have a terminal illness with a life expectancy of six months or less has been designed specifically to enable decisions to be fast tracked throughout the claim once the first payment has been made.

Department for Work and Pensions: Brexit

Valerie Vaz: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether her Department has deprioritised any Statutory Instruments in relation to the UK leaving the EU; and if she will publish the criteria her Department uses to deprioritise those Instruments.

Alok Sharma: The Department for Work and Pensions has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Universal Credit: Appeals

Martin Whitfield: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 2 April 2019 to Question 237196 on Universal Credit: Appeals, what assessment she has made of her Departments capacity to procure a record of data in relation to Universal Credit (work capability) decisions that are subject to an order of a tribunal asking her department to respond within 21 days.

Justin Tomlinson: Whatever the issue being disputed, when a Universal Credit appeal is made the Tribunals Service will send the appeal to DWP and ask that it provides an appeal response within 28 days – there is no 21 day rule. The time taken for the response to be provided has been recorded for UC Full Service appeals since 1 April 2019.

Local Housing Allowance: Greater London

Ms Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, for what reason the shared accommodation rate in the central London broad rental market area will not receive the three per cent uplift through targeted affordability funding in 2019-20.

Will Quince: Targeted affordability funding is allocated to those rates that have diverged the furthest from local rents. All 960 Local Housing Allowance rates are ranked according to the share of the market they afford, starting with the most divergent and the funding is then applied. The shared accommodation rate in the central London Broad Rental Market Area was increased via targeted affordability funding in both 2017/18 and 2018/19. In 2019/20 this rate was not eligible for targeted affordability funding as it no longer fell within the range of rates that have diverged the most from local rents.

Local Housing Allowance: Greater London

Ms Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many claimants are in receipt of the shared accommodation rate of local housing allowance in the central London broad rental market area.

Will Quince: As of November 2018, 380 households were in receipt of the shared accommodation rate of local housing allowance in the Central London BRMA. This does not include households who are in receipt of the housing element of Universal Credit.

*No heading*

Ms Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many and what proportion of the 192 shared accommodation rates of local housing allowance have been uprated as a result of the targeted affordability fund in each year since this was introduced.

Will Quince: The information requested is in the table below. YearShared Accommodation RatesProportion2017/201822 11%2018/20196031%2019/20208745%

Sick Leave: Stress

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate her Department has made of the number of working days lost to stress in 2018.

Justin Tomlinson: Data from the Office for National Statistics shows that in 2017 14.3 million working days were lost in the UK to stress, depression and anxiety. Data for 2018 is not yet available. Data is available on sickness absence at https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peopleinwork/employmentandemployeetypes/datasets/sicknessabsenceinthelabourmarket

Local Housing Allowance: Greater London

Ms Karen Buck: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, if she will direct the Valuation Office Agency to undertake research into the reasons why low numbers of rooms in London are available for letting (a) at and (b) below the shared accommodation rate of local housing allowance.

Will Quince: There are no plans to ask the Valuation Office Agency to undertake any research in this area.

Universal Credit: Disability

Danielle Rowley: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 22 March to Question 234216 on Universal Credit: Disability, what plans the Department has for improving data collection to capture accurate, aggregate data on claimants, including claimants with vulnerabilities.

Justin Tomlinson: The Department has already introduced a function on the Universal Credit system to ‘pin’ key profile notes so they are instantly visible to all staff helping a claimant. The Department continues to develop its approach to capturing accurate, aggregate data on claimants, including those with complex needs. Further work on understanding any vulnerabilities our claimants may have, and apply this learning to the design of Universal Credit is ongoing. This has been prioritised for the current Universal Credit development phase. The Department will report back to the Work and Pensions Select Committee with an update on its progress in late Spring 2019.

Flexible Support Fund

Anneliese Dodds: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what the overall levels of payment were from the Flexible Support Fund (a) in each region, and (b) on (i) childcare, (ii) training, (iii) clothing for work and (iv) other categories of activity in each of the last 24 months.

Alok Sharma: The Department for Work and Pensions has indicated that it will not be possible to answer this question within the usual time period. An answer is being prepared and will be provided as soon as it is available.

Pension Credit

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how much her Department has spent on increasing take-up rates for pension credit in each year for which data is available.

Guy Opperman: The DWP uses a wide range of channels to communicate information about Pension Credit to potential customers. This includes information on www.gov.uk, in leaflets and by telephone as well as through DWP staff in Pension Centres and Jobcentres and staff in Local Authorities who administer Housing Benefit. The Government is committed to ensuring that older people receive the support they are entitled to and the DWP targets activity on engaging with people who may be eligible to benefits at pivotal stages, such as when they claim State Pension or report a change in their circumstances. Furthermore, the Pension Credit toolkit is an on-line tool for agencies and welfare rights organisations to use in order to encourage Pension Credit take-up. It contains publicity material and guidance designed to help older people understand how they could get Pension Credit and help organisations support someone applying for Pension Credit as well as ideas for encouraging take-up. The Pension Credit toolkit can be found here:https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/pension-credit-toolkit The specific information requested on how much the DWP has spent on increasing take-up rates for Pension Credit in each year is not available.

Pension Credit

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what estimate she has made of the (a) amount of unclaimed pension credit and (b) average amount of unclaimed pension credit per eligible person in each year for which data is available.

Guy Opperman: The table below shows estimates for the (a) amount of unclaimed Pension credit and (b) average amount of unclaimed pension credit per household in each year for which data is available.  Total amount of unclaimed pension creditAverage (mean) weekly amount of unclaimed pension credit Average (median) weekly amount of unclaimed pension credit 2012/13£3.1bn£41£222013/14£2.9bn£41£232014/15£2.8bn£42£242015/16£2.7bn£42£252016/17£3.1bn£49£24 Source: Income related benefits: estimates of take-up 2016 to 2017 Please note that figures in the publication reflect average amounts of unclaimed Pension Credit per household instead of per person. This is because data from the Family Resources Survey, a survey assessing households, is used to produce the figures in the publication.

*No heading*

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent estimate she has made of the number of people with a disability living in poverty.

Justin Tomlinson: National statistics on the number of people with a disability living in poverty, are published annually in the “Households Below Average Income” publication. Latest figures can be found using the link below, in table 7b, in the file “summary-hbai-1994-95-2017-18-tables.ods”. https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/789816/hbai-2017-2018-tables-ods-files.zip

Universal Credit

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to answer of 8 April to Question 240478 on Universal Credit, in relation to benefit advances taken by universal credit recipients (a) what proportion of claimants have taken an advance, (b)  what the average amount of money is that claimants are advanced, (c) what proportion of claimants have taken the maximum advance and (d) what proportion of claimants have been granted 12 months to repay an advance in each year for which information is available.

Alok Sharma: a) Around 60% of new claims take up an advance. Subject to some fluctuation, this rate of advance take-up has been broadly consistent over the last 12 months. This shows that claimants are being made aware of advances and are using it where they need this help.b) The average advance amount for new claims is around £400.c) Around 70% of advances are taken at the maximum entitlement.d) Around 85% of advances are chosen to be repaid over 12 months Notes1. Figures relate to Universal Credit full service only2. Figures cover the latest 12 months of data from March 2018 to February 2019.

Universal Credit: Private Rented Housing

Steve McCabe: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, pursuant to the Answer of 9 April 2019 to Question 240482 on Universal Credit: Private Rented Housing, what meaningful changes have taken place.

Will Quince: The Government has begun the process of engaging with the sector to tackle the problems faced by people renting in the private rented sector. We have seen positive changes from property sites who have committed to removing adverts with ‘No DSS’ wording and from lenders who have committed to removing mortgage restrictions that would prevent landlords from renting to tenants in receipt of housing support. This work is ongoing and we will continue to bring the sector together to tackle such practices. Furthermore, as stated by the Secretary of State on 11 January 2019, the Department has also committed to increasing the support available to private landlords. An on-line system for private landlords will be introduced so they can request, where necessary, that their tenants’ rent is paid directly to them.

Carer's Allowance

Darren Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, for what reason Carers' Allowance is not paid to people that have reached state pensionable age.

Justin Tomlinson: There is no upper age limit to claiming Carer’s Allowance, but it cannot normally be paid with the State Pension. Carer’s Allowance provides a measure of replacement income where the duties of caring for a severely disabled person limit the prospect of full-time work and the earnings it would yield. State Pension provides a replacement income in retirement.It is a long-standing and basic principle of the social security system that only one benefit at a time can be paid for the same purpose. Even though the circumstances which give rise to entitlement to Carer’s Allowance and State Pension are different, they are both designed to provide a degree of replacement for lost or foregone income.The overlapping benefits rules, which prevent both benefits being paid, were established to reflect the general principle that flat-rate benefits designed to help with income maintenance e.g. Carer’s Allowance and State Pension, should not be added together and paid in full, even though a person may qualify for both. However, if a carer’s State Pension is less than Carer's Allowance, State Pension is paid and topped up with Carer's Allowance to the basic weekly rate of Carer's Allowance which, from April 2019, increased to £66.15.

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs

Electric Vehicles: Batteries

Luke Graham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural affairs, what plans he has for the (a) disposal and (b) refurbishment of electric car batteries.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Electric car batteries are classified as industrial batteries and covered under the Waste Batteries and Accumulators Regulations 2009. This bans the disposal to landfill of such batteries and their incineration. It also establishes take-back and recycling obligations for industrial battery producers. The UK’s £246 million Faraday Battery Challenge is playing a leading role in promoting the reuse and recycling of battery components. One of the eight technical challenges set is to be able to recycle 95% of an electric vehicle battery pack by 2035. A number of live projects are exploring this area including a £10 million Faraday Institution research project. This is developing the technological, economic and policy framework that would allow high percentages of the materials in lithium-ion batteries at the end of their first life to be reused or recycled. In addition, several collaborative research and development projects are looking at reusing, remanufacturing or recycling end-of-life, automotive lithium-ion batteries.

Food: Waste

Dr Dan Poulter: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans he has to ensure local authorities reduce food waste within their communities.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: In December last year, the Government launched its Resources and Waste Strategy which sets out a new approach to address food waste from farm to fork. The Strategy calls on local authorities to tackle food waste within their communities by actively supporting the development and use of the Waste and Resources Action Programme’s national messaging to promote food waste prevention among citizens, and by playing an active part in piloting interventions and in scaling up those pilots which prove most successful. Last autumn, the Secretary of State announced a new pilot scheme to reduce food waste, supported by a £15 million fund. The first £5 million round of funding is currently being allocated to food redistribution organisations. The Government has also appointed Ben Elliot as the food waste champion who will work with business leaders to ensure that the issue of food waste and surplus remains at the top of their agendas, with household food waste as a priority.

Agriculture: Subsidies

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many (a) countryside stewardship and (b) environmental stewardship payments from (i) 2015 and (ii) 2016 are outstanding.

Mr Robert Goodwill: There are no outstanding Countryside Stewardship claim payments for 2015 as the first agreements did not commence until 1 January 2016. Over 99% of eligible Countryside Stewardship 2016 claims have received their payments and there are six claims to complete. Over 99% of Environmental Stewardship eligible claims have received their 2015 and 2016 payments. For 2015 there are 14 claims to complete, and 53 claims to complete for 2016.

Agriculture: Subsidies

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment his Department has made for the reasons for the delays to the Rural Payments Agency issuing Countryside Stewardship and Environmental Stewardship payments.

Mr Robert Goodwill: There are a number of reasons for delays in issuing Countryside Stewardship and Environmental Stewardship payments. These include complex rules, requirements, processes and systems which have made the scheme overly complicated. The Rural Payments Agency took on responsibility for issuing Countryside Stewardship and Environmental Stewardship payments in October 2018. It is simplifying the administration of the scheme as far as possible under the current EU system by streamlining processes, making changes to IT systems and boosting the workforce to speed up processing.

Agriculture: Subsidies

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the Rural Payments Agency is on target to meet the payment commitments that he set out at the 2019 NFU conference.

Mr Robert Goodwill: Yes. The Rural Payments Agency is on track to achieve the commitments set out at the 2019 NFU Conference.

Agriculture: Subsidies

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans his Department has to meet the Government commitment that no-one in any existing Countryside Stewardship or Environmental Stewardship scheme will be unfairly disadvantaged when the UK transitions to new arrangements.

Mr Robert Goodwill: As we develop the new Environmental Land Management (ELM) system and evolve the Countryside Stewardship (CS) offer we will work to ensure we can offer a smooth transition from CS to ELM when it becomes fully operational from 2024.

Agriculture: Environment Protection

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he has taken to meet the 2017 Conservative manifesto commitment to help Natural England to expand their provision of technical expertise to farmers to deliver environmental improvements on a landscape scale; and what evidence he is able to present to demonstrate progress against that commitment.

Mr Robert Goodwill: On 9 February 2018 a further 37 new groups were signed up to the Countryside Stewardship Facilitation fund. The addition of these groups to the scheme means that there are now 97 groups covering over 500,000 hectares of holdings in England with three year contracts. They are delivering landscape-scale measures for wildlife, water management and the historic environment, with over 2,400 members of Facilitation Fund groups.

Plastics: Waste

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress his Department has made on banning single-use plastics by 2021.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Government published the Resources and Waste Strategy for England in December last year which sets out our plans to reduce plastic pollution and to move towards a more circular economy. We have already made good progress, banning microbeads in rinse-off personal care products and removing 15.6 billion plastic bags from circulation with our 5p charge. We have already consulted on banning plastic straws, stirrers and cotton buds in addition to extending the carrier bag charge. Consultation has also begun on reforming existing packaging waste regulation, introducing a deposit return scheme for drinks containers and increasing consistency in the recycling system. Legislative proposals will be developed taking account of the consultation responses. We will continue to review the latest evidence on problematic products and materials to take a systematic approach to reducing the use of unnecessary single-use plastic products including problematic packaging materials, in line with our commitment to match, and where economically practicable exceed, the ambition of the EU in this regard. Our ambition is to eliminate all avoidable plastic waste throughout the lifetime of the 25 Year Environment Plan. For the most problematic plastics we are going faster – that is why we commit to work towards all plastic packaging placed on the UK market being recyclable, reusable or compostable by 2025.

Pet Travel Scheme

Gordon Henderson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make it his policy to maintain the provision of the EU Pet Travel Scheme in the event that the UK leaves the EU (a) with and (b) without a deal.

David Rutley: While the UK remains a member state, the EU current pet travel scheme arrangements will continue to apply. After we leave the EU, we want pet travel to continue in any scenario with the minimum of disruption whilst maintaining high biosecurity and welfare standards. As such, the Government has no immediate plans to change our pet travel arrangements following the UK’s departure from the EU (as it relates to health requirements) in any scenario. However, we will become a third country with regards to the EU’s Pet Travel Scheme and will need to comply with the appropriate requirements for pet movements to the EU.

Seafood: Exports

David Duguid: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what certification would be required for live seafood exporters based in Scotland exporting to the EU 27 in the event the UK leaves the EU without a deal.

David Duguid: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what guidance his Department has issued to Scottish live seafood exporters on preparations in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal.

Mr Robert Goodwill: Delivering a deal with the EU remains our top priority, but as with any responsible Government, we are planning for all scenarios. To continue exporting to the EU if the UK leaves without a deal, UK seafood exporters would need to provide a catch certificate and an export health certificate for most fish and fish products. We have published detailed guidance on the gov.uk website and have held several events nationally to help the industry prepare to abide by these rules imposed by the EU. These events have included demonstrations of the IT systems which exporters would need to use, and the processes they would have to follow in the event of leaving the EU without a deal. Fisheries management is a devolved matter. That will not change as a result of leaving the EU. The UK Government has worked closely with the Scottish Government, as well as the Welsh Government and DAERA, to ensure consistency and help prepare the sector as a whole.

Heathland

Sir Hugo Swire: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what discussions he has had with Natural England on its revised policy on heather management.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The most recent statement Natural England (NE) has put out in relation to heather management, has been their position statement on “Burning as a tool for the restoration of upland blanket bog”. On 24 January, NE informed Defra Ministers that a position statement would be published. On 11 February, NE published the position statement.

Plastic Bags

Andrew Rosindell: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make it his policy to join countries including Tanzania in the banning of the (a) production, (b) importation, (c) sale and (d) use of single-use plastic bags.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: This is a devolved matter and the information provided therefore relates to England only. A number of Commonwealth countries have introduced either a ban or a levy on plastic bags. To achieve global change the UK has called on members of the Commonwealth Clean Ocean Alliance, which we lead with Vanuatu, to significantly reduce single-use carrier bags (SUCBs) by 2021. The Government currently has no plans to introduce a ban on SUCBs. However, we have already taken action to reduce the consumption of SUCBs in England through the minimum 5p levy which applies to large retailers. Additionally, we recently carried out a consultation to extend the charge to all retailers and to increase the charge to a minimum 10p. The outcome of that consultation will be published soon.

Circuses: Animal Welfare

Jim Shannon: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans he has to maintain the welfare of the wild animals touring with travelling circuses in the event that the Welfare of Wild Animals in Travelling Circuses (England) Regulations 2012 expire before a ban on the use of such animals in circuses is in place.

David Rutley: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Oxford and West Abingdon, Layla Moran, on 16 October 2018 to PQ 176633. https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/written-questions-answers-statements/written-question/Commons/2018-10-08/176633

Fisheries Bill

Luke Pollard: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, whether the Government has plans for the Fisheries Bill to complete all of its Parliamentary stages in this session of Parliament.

Mr Robert Goodwill: The scheduling of the Fisheries Bill will be announced by the leader of the House of Commons in the usual way.

Beverage Containers: Waste

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans his Department has to reduce the use of disposable plastic bottles.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Our Resources and Waste Strategy, published 18 December 2018, sets out how we will eliminate all avoidable plastic waste. The Government is currently consulting on proposals to introduce a Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) for drinks containers in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The aims of a DRS are to reduce the amount of littering in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, boost recycling levels for relevant material, and promote recycling through clear labelling and consumer messaging. HDPE and PTE plastic bottles are included in the proposals. National Refill Day was launched in September 2018 to raise awareness for reusable plastic bottles and encourage the public to reduce plastic waste. We will continue to support initiatives from business and civil society where doing so drives further improvement and explore other avenues for progress in consultation with stakeholders.

Plastics: Rivers

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what plans his Department has to reduce plastic pollution in rivers and streams.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Government published the Resources and Waste strategy in December last year, setting out our plans to reduce plastic pollution with a target to eliminate all avoidable waste throughout the life of the 25 Year Environment Plan. Estimates show that the majority of aquatic litter originates from land based sources therefore our main approach to stemming the flow is by taking action on land. We have already consulted on banning plastic straws, stirrers, cotton buds and extending the carrier bag charge. Since the introduction of the charge in 2015, 15.6 billion fewer bags have been handed out to shoppers by the seven main retailers. We are currently consulting on a number of key policy measures to significantly change the way that we manage our waste. These include: reforming existing packaging waste regulations; exploring the introduction of a deposit return scheme for drinks containers; and increasing consistency in the recycling system; with a parallel consultation on the ‘Plastic Packaging Tax’ that the Chancellor announced in the Budget last year. Legislative proposals will be developed taking account of the consultation responses. The UK is already making great strides to tackle the plastic that blights our streets, rivers and oceans. Our world-leading ban on microbeads in rinse-off cosmetics and personal care products will help stop potentially billions of tiny pieces of plastic from entering the aquatic environment every year. We have also announced a £200,000 research project which will focus on microplastics derived from tyres and clothing. This will report shortly, and the evidence will help us develop policies to tackle the problem effectively. Through its seven-point plan on plastics, the Environment Agency (EA) is exploring additional ways in which regulatory and voluntary initiatives could reduce plastics entering both the marine, and freshwater environments. The EA are working closely with the water industry and leading academics to investigate the types and quantities of microplastics entering the environment to identify where best to focus our efforts. Wastewater treatment works are important pathways for contaminants, including microplastics, to enter the wider aquatic environment. Over £9 billion has been invested in England and Wales between 1990 and 2010 to improve sewage treatment works and collecting systems to limit polluting events, and £2 billion more is planned by 2020.

Plastics: Waste

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what his timescale is for responding to his Department's consultation on Single use plastic: banning the distribution and/or sale of plastic straws, stirrers and plastic-stemmed cotton buds in England.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Policy officials are currently developing proposals regarding the ban on the sale and/or distribution of plastic straws, stirrers and plastic stemmed-cotton buds. The analysis, responses and Government response will be published shortly.

Air Pollution: Wednesbury

Tom Watson: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will publish the statistics his Department holds on air quality in Wednesbury in the borough of Sandwell.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Statistics from national air quality monitoring networks are published on the UK-AIR website. The national network for the main set of air pollutants is the Automatic Urban and Rural Network (AURN), which meets the requirements of the Ambient Air Quality Directive (2008/50/EC). Hourly measurements from this network are published within two hours of measurement on the UK-AIR website; various data extraction and analysis tools are also available. The URL for the data section of the UK-AIR website is here:https://uk-air.defra.gov.uk/data/ There is currently one AURN monitoring site in the borough of Sandwell: West Bromwich Kenrick Park. Sandwell Metropolitan Borough Council also carry out air quality monitoring activity, and publish annual reports on their website containing statistics from their monitoring sites.

Electronic Equipment: Recycling

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the Chancellor of the Exchequer of the introduction of an electronic waste recycling fee on new purchases of electronic products.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The current Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Regulations are based on producer responsibility where producers have a financial obligation to pay for the environmentally sound collection, treatment and recycling of electronic products when they become waste. The Government has committed to reviewing the current WEEE system by 2020. This will involve consultation across Government and with interested stakeholders.

Agricultural Machinery: Carbon Emissions

Tom Brake: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, pursuant to section 5.8.1 of the Clean Air Strategy published on 14 January 2019, when he will publish further detail on his proposals to use environmental permitting to tackle emissions from non-road mobile machinery.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Non Road Mobile Machinery (NRMM) can make a significant contribution to local air pollution, and so it is justified to bring in controls which enable a reduction in their emissions where required. We are currently considering what scope and stringency of controls would be appropriate and will consult on proposals in due course.

Food: Waste

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to reduce the amount of food wasted by (a) consumers, (b) supermarkets and (c) restaurants.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: In December last year, the Government launched its Resources and Waste Strategy which sets out a new approach to address food waste from farm to fork. Last autumn, the Secretary of State announced a new pilot scheme to reduce food waste, supported by a £15 million fund, specifically addressing surplus food from retail and manufacturing. The first £5 million round of funding is currently being allocated to food redistribution organisations. The Government has also appointed Ben Elliot as the food waste champion who will work with business leaders including from restaurants and supermarkets to tackle food waste. The strategy also sets out how the Government will consult on annual reporting of food surplus and waste by food businesses and support cross-sector collaboration through the Courtauld 2025 agreement, affecting both supermarkets and restaurants. In addition the Government: (a) called on food businesses, local authorities and the third and public sectors to actively support the development and use of the Waste and Resources Action Programme’s national messaging to promote food waste prevention among citizens, and to play an active part in piloting interventions and in scaling up those pilots which prove most successful; (b) published key industry guidance and best practice on food waste for retail and food businesses. In the autumn, a transparent survey will be published which reports progress; and (c) will produce guidance for the hospitality sector including best practice examples such as offering a range of portion sizes and a take-home service for leftovers.

Eggs: Labelling

Mr Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent assessment he has made of the adequacy of best before dates on eggs.

David Rutley: Regulation (EC) No 589/2008, which lays down marketing standards for eggs, requires raw, shell eggs to be marked with a best before date which should be no more than 28 days after laying. Regulation (EC) No 853/2004, which lays down specific hygiene rules for food of animal origin, requires eggs to be sold within 21 days of laying. ‘Best before’ is used on most foods, to indicate that the quality of the food may not be at its best after that date has expired. It is not an indication of safety and, where safe to do so, food may continue to be sold and used after this date. Good use of these indications, in line with recent Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) guidance, will ensure that consumers will be able to make the best use of food and reduce waste. Food labelling will be reviewed following EU Exit to ensure continued consumer confidence in the food they buy.

Hedges and Ditches

Catherine West: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to protect hedgerow environments.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Legal protection for hedgerows is provided by the Hedgerows Regulations 1997. These regulations prohibit the removal of most or parts of countryside hedgerows without first seeking approval from the local planning authority, which is required to decide whether a hedgerow is “important” because of its wildlife, landscape, historical (i.e. more than 30 years old) or archaeological value and as such should not be removed. Land managers in receipt of Basic Payment Scheme payments are also required to protect hedgerows on their land and through our agri-environment schemes, such as Countryside Stewardship, we further recognise their valuable role by funding the management of hedgerows to deliver recognised benefits for wildlife, landscape and the historic environment.

Recycling

Mr Marcus Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which local authorities in England collect recycling (a) weekly and (b) more than once a week.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The attached spreadsheet sets out which local authorities in England collect recycling (a) weekly and (b) more than once a week.



LA data on recycling collection frequency
(Excel SpreadSheet, 76.79 KB)

Renewable Energy: Waste

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many facilitates there are in the UK that generate energy from waste.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: There are 83 permitted operational incineration plants in England with waste feedstocks derived from municipal sources; waste wood (biomass), sewage sludge and clinical waste.

Waste Disposal

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many local authorities (a) deal with locally arising waste in their area and (b) export it outside their area.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: We have not compiled such information, although information on the treatment and facilities used by each local authority will be recorded within the Waste-Data-Flow system (http://www.wastedataflow.org/) that local authorities use to provide information on waste collection and management. Some local authorities use local facilities, others transport it outside of their areas. This is a commercial matter for each local authority, and each local authority must do what achieves the best value for money for its residents.

Electronic Equipment: Recycling

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many tonnes of electronic waste were recycled in each year in the UK since 2010.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: YearAmount of obligated WEEE received for treatment at AATFs (tonnes)Amount of non-obligated WEEE received at AATFs for treatment (tonnes)Total (tonnes)2010486,403.96877,426.524563,830.4922011505,398.63074,667.937580,066.5672012501,050.257158,319.669659,369.9262013494,407.835184,834.761679,242.5962014509,809.170134,811.069644,620.2392015529,058.633132,069.321661,127.9542016592,428.047126,999.022719,427.0692017534,582.034118,592.058653,174.0922018501,885.35961,409.832563,295.191  The above table details the quantity of UK electronic waste received at Approved Authorised Treatment facilities for treatment and subsequent recycling for the period 2010 to 2018. This data only reflects electronic waste received at sites which have been approved as part of the WEEE regulations to issue WEEE evidence in support of the financial obligations placed on EEE producers. There are other waste operators, who will hold a permit issued under the Environmental Permitting regulations who will also be treating and recycling WEEE delivered to them outside of the WEEE producer Responsibility system. Such operators are not required under their data reporting requirement to provide specific WEEE data. Defra make a substantiated estimate on this additional WEEE treated and recycled, when reporting the UK position to the EU. The substantiated estimate is for an additional 270,000 tonnes per annum of WEEE being treated and recycled in addition to amounts detailed in the above table.

Electronic Equipment: Recycling

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many centres for recycling electronic and electronic waste there are in the UK.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: There are currently 1,855 local authority household waste recycling centres approved as Designated Collection Facilities under the UK Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Regulations 2013.

Electronic Equipment: Recycling

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what new incentives is he considering to stimulate the recycling of electronic and electrical waste.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The current 2013 Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Regulations are based on producer responsibility requiring producers to pay for the environmentally sound collection, treatment and recycling of electronic products when they become waste. The WEEE Regulations have contributed to high levels of collection, treatment and recycling of electrical waste since 2014. Last year, producers financed the collection of 493,323 tonnes of household WEEE. The Government’s Resources and Waste Strategy sets out that we will consult on changing the WEEE producer responsibility regime by the end of 2020 as part of the strategy to increase resource efficiency and the adoption of circular economy principles. Measures to stimulate recycling of electrical and electronic equipment will consider how to reward producers for designing and selling more resource efficient products or services.

Plastics: Recycling

Mr Barry Sheerman: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps he is taking to reduce the amount of non-recyclable plastic; and what initiatives he is rolling out on recycling.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Government set out in the 25 Year Environment Plan, published in January 2018, its commitment to eliminate all avoidable plastic waste and to work towards all plastic packaging placed on the market being recyclable, reusable or compostable by 2025. Our Resource and Waste Strategy was published in December 2018 and contains details of measures that will help to achieve this. We are currently consulting on a suite of proposals that will lead to an increase in the supply and demand for secondary materials. These include reforming the UK packaging producer responsibility system, the introduction of a deposit return scheme (DRS) for drinks containers in England, and a tax on plastic packaging with less than 30% recycled content, all subject to consultation. These measures will provide a strong incentive for producers to design and make plastic packaging that uses less virgin materials and is more easily recyclable. We want to increase the quantity and quality of material that is collected and recycled. To achieve this, we are consulting on requiring all waste collection authorities to collect the same core set of dry materials from households across England. We want to make recycling clearer and easier so that everyone knows exactly what they can put in the recycling bin, whether at work or at home. The consultations setting out the Government’s proposals and measures referred to above were published on 18 February and can be found here: https://consult.defra.gov.uk/environmental-quality/resource-and-waste-and-plastic-packaging-tax-consu-1/. There may be times when a ban is appropriate as part of a wider strategic approach. We have already banned the sale of plastic microbeads, consulted on banning plastic drinking straws, stirrers and cotton buds, and are assessing the impact of banning other single-use plastic items.

Birds: Conservation

Alberto Costa: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment he has made of the current protections in place for swifts, swallows and martins.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Like all wild birds, swifts, swallows and martins as well as their nests and eggs are offered robust protection under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. Individuals convicted of an offence could face up to six months in prison or an unlimited fine, or both.

Bovine Tuberculosis: South West

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many herds in each of the following badger cull areas of (a) Gloucestershire and (b) West Somerset were tested with interferon gamma in each years from 2010 to 2018.

Mr Robert Goodwill: I refer the hon. Member to the reply previously given on 3 April 2019 to PQ 213909.

Bovine Tuberculosis: South West

Dr David Drew: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many interferon gamma tests were conducted on each of the herds in (a) Gloucestershire  and (b) Somerset; and how many cattle tested positive in each herd in each year from 2010 to 2018.

Mr Robert Goodwill: I refer the hon. Member to the reply previously given on 5 February 2019 to PQ 213910.

Poultry

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when his Department will publish its response to the consultation on removing the Greenland White-fronted goose from schedule 2 of the Wildlife Act 1981.

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, when he plans to remove the European white-fronted goose from schedule 2 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Government intends to prohibit the hunting of Greenland white fronted goose by removing the species from schedule 2 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. I anticipate that the legislation will be laid this autumn. There are no plans to remove the European white-fronted goose from schedule 2 of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981.

Dangerous Dogs

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what measures he is considering to protect livestock from dogs that are being exercised in the countryside on farmland.

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many sheep have been killed by domestic dogs on farmland in England in each of the last five years.

Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many prosecutions there have been of dog owners for sheep worrying in each of the last five years.

David Rutley: There is a range of measures available to the police and local authorities to prevent or respond to dog attacks on livestock. The Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 makes it an offence to allow a dog to be dangerously out of control and this includes in and around livestock. In addition, the Dogs (Protection of Livestock) Act 1953 makes it an offence to allow a dog to worry livestock. The Anti-Social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014 includes specific powers for police and local authorities to take action before a dog becomes dangerously out of control by issuing a warning notice for low level dog related nuisance. The table below provides the number of people prosecuted under the Dogs (Protection of Livestock) Act 1953 for allowing dogs to worry all types of livestock, including sheep, in the last five years for which figures are available. Prosecutions have been made under the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 but data is not centrally held on the circumstances of how the dog was dangerously out of control.  Dogs (Protection of Livestock) Act 1953  20132014201520162017Grand TotalProsecuted5051474737232

Chemicals: Regulation

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many full-time equivalent staff have been allocated to work under the UK-REACH IT system.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: In a no deal scenario, Defra, the Health and Safety Executive and the Environment Agency will require an estimated 170 full-time equivalent staff across the three organisations to deliver a functioning regulatory framework for chemicals, including the operation of a UK REACH IT system.

Chemicals: Regulation

Mary Creagh: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, which company has been awarded the contract to build the UK REACH IT database system.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The UK REACH-IT service is being developed by Defra’s Internal Digital Data and Technology Services directorate with support from contingent labour and suppliers. Suppliers include Kainos, Microsoft and Keep IT Simple.

Waste Disposal: Crime

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate his Department has made of the environmental cost of waste crime in England and Wales.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: The Environment Agency has published an evaluation of the effect of additional funding on tackling waste crime, identifying £5 worth of potential benefits for each £1 invested. This included an estimated environmental cost of £1.86-£1.88 per tonne of waste on illegal waste sites. www.gov.uk/government/publications/waste-crime-interventions-and-evaluation Additionally, Rethinking Waste Crime, published by the Environmental Services Association in 2017, estimated the economic impact of waste crime in England at over £600 million. This includes wider economic impacts and is not limited to environmental costs. www.ciwm-journal.co.uk/downloads/Rethinking_Waste_Crime.pdf

Food: Waste

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Education on reducing food waste in schools throughout the UK.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: In December 2018, the Government launched its Resources and Waste Strategy which sets out a new approach to address food waste from farm to fork. Within the food waste chapter, the Government committed to tackling food waste in schools. Through the Waste and Resources Action Programme (WRAP) guidance will be developed and widely promoted.

Canoeing

John Grogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what estimate he has made of the total length of unmanaged waterways in England to which canoeists have an undisputed right of navigation.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: I refer the hon. Member to the reply given to the hon. Member for Mid Derbyshire, Pauline Latham, on 19 February 2019 to PQ 220196.

Canoeing

John Grogan: To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what voluntary access arrangements to inland waterways for recreational purposes have been negotiated in the last 10 years; and how many additional miles of waterway have been made available to canoeists through this mechanism.

Dr Thérèse Coffey: Information of this nature is not held by the department.

Home Office

Visas: Palestinians

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many Tier 5 visas have been issued for Medical Training Initiative applicants from the Occupied Palestinian Territories in each month since January 2018.

Emily Thornberry: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department,  how many Tier 5 visas have been refused for Medical Training Initiative applicants from the Occupied Palestinian Territories in each month since January 2018.

Caroline Nokes: Home Office does not hold the information requested. The information available related to total Tier 5 visa grants and refusals, published in the quarterly Immigration Statistics, Visas volume 1 table vi_01_q, latest edition at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/immigration-statistics-year-ending-december-2018/list-of-tables .Information on whether an individual is a Medical Training Initiative applicant is not required as part of entry clearance visa applications and not included in centrally collated statistical databases used to produce published statistics.

Private Rented Housing: EU Nationals

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, whether he plans publish clear guidelines for landlords on the right-to-rent rules for EU citizens.

Caroline Nokes: The Government has made clear that the current arrangements for landlords conducting checks on EU nationals, involving the use of national passports and identity cards, will not change prior to introduction of the future skills-based immigration system. Updated guidance for Landlords will be published shortly.

Immigration: Aberdeen

Kirsty Blackman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people with AB postcodes have been seen at service and support centres broken down by (a) month and (b) support centre.

Caroline Nokes: Unfortunately the data requested is not recorded in a form that can be reported.

Immigration: Aberdeen

Kirsty Blackman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many people with AB postcodes have been seen at UKVCAS centres broken down by (a) month and (b) UKVCAS centre.

Kirsty Blackman: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many appointment slots are available each week at the UK Visa and Citizenship Application Services Centre in Aberdeen; and how many of those appointment slots are filled each week.

Caroline Nokes: Data on the number of people seen at UK VCAS Centres from postcodes beginning AB are not published. This information could only be provided by interrogation of individual case records, which could only be achieved at disproportionate costs.The UK Visa and Citizenship Application Service centre in Aberdeen, which provides enhanced services to customers, has 21 slots available per week. On average 87% of those slots have been filled from 3 December to 5 April. In response to an increase in demand for appointments at this service centre, UK Visas & Immigration’s delivery partner, Sopra Steria Ltd have increased their appointment slots by >50% from 9 April.

Immigration: EU Nationals

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what assessment he has made of the viability of an ID scanning location in Glasgow for applicants to the EU Settlement scheme.

Patrick Grady: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what the cost of ID document scanning services is at facilities in (a) Cunmock, (b) Kilmarnock and (c) Edinburgh.

Caroline Nokes: The application process for the EU Settlement Scheme is straightforward and user-friendly, and it is accessible on any smartphone, tablet or computer using internet browsers.There are multiple ways to have identity documents checked, including using the EU Exit: ID Document Check app or by posting identity documents to the Home Office. We have also opened 50 locations nationwide where applicants can have their passport scanned and verified.The ID document scanning service is provided at the discretion of each local authority. The Home Office would encourage as many local authorities as possible to offer the service, and we continue to work with local government bodies across the UK to increase the provision of this service by local authorities.The viability and cost of offering the ID document scanning service in each location is a matter for each local authority. Charges for using the service, payable directly to the local authority, can be set to cover the costs of providing the service.

Immigration: EU Nationals

Helen Hayes: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what plans his Department has to ensure that new immigration rules for EU nationals do not limit the recruitment of care workers.

Caroline Nokes: In December 2018, the Government set out its proposals in “the UK’s future Skills-based Immigration System” White Paper. The White Paper proposals include a new route for skilled workers which will be open to anyone at RQF level 3 and above, irrespective of where they are applying from. This route will not be capped allowing all of those who meet our requirements to come to the UK.The White Paper also includes a transitional route for temporary workers which will be open to anyone from qualifying countries, wishing to fill positions at any skill level, for up to 12 months. We do not intend to impose a cap on the number of people wishing to use the route.The White Paper is the start of a new conversation and we have launched a year-long engagement programme to take the views of a range of stake-holders across the UK, including the health and social care sector. We are determined to ensure that the future immigration system is efficient and able to respond to users’ needs.

Immigration: EU Nationals

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps his Department is taking to  ensuring that ID document scanner locations are accessible for people living in Wales.

Caroline Nokes: The application process for the EU Settlement Scheme is straightforward and user-friendly, and it is accessible on any smartphone, tablet or computer using internet browsers.There are multiple ways to have identity documents checked, including using the EU Exit: ID Document Check app or by posting identity documents to the Home Office. We have also opened 50 locations nationwide where applicants can have their passport scanned and verified.The ID document scanning service is provided at the discretion of each local authority. The Home Office would encourage as many local authorities as possible to offer the service, and we continue to work with local government bodies across the UK to increase the provision of this service by local authorities, including in Wales.

Immigration: EU Nationals

Jo Stevens: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how much his Department (a) has paid and (b) plans to pay to Caerphilly Council for the operation of an ID document scanner location for EU citizens settlement scheme.

Caroline Nokes: The ID document scanning service is provided at the discretion of each local authority. The viability and cost of offering the ID document scanning service in each location is a matter for each local authority.Participating local authorities, such as Caerphilly, do not receive funding from central Government to provide this service. Charges for using the service, payable directly to the local authority, can be set to cover the costs of providing the service.

Asylum: Sudan

Stephen Doughty: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, if he will revise his country policy and information notes on (a) Sudan and (b) Khartoum as a safe site for internal relocation following reports of violence by government forces against protestors.

Caroline Nokes: We are monitoring the situation in Sudan. Should we consider that it has a material impact on our assessment of the situation, we will update the respective country policy and information notes. Where additional information is needed, decision makers can ask for bespoke research to be undertaken on a case by case basis or we would issue an interim summary of the situation.

Fire and Rescue Services: Staff

Stephanie Peacock: To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, pursuant to the Answer of 10 April 2019 to Question 241477, how many employed firefighters there have been in each fire and rescue service in each year since 2010.

Mr Nick Hurd: The latest published statistics on how many firefighters are employed by each fire and rescue service in England were published on 18 October 2018 and can be found in Table 1101 available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/statistical-data-sets/fire-statistics-data-tables#workforce-and-workforce-diversity

Wales Office

Stronger Towns Fund: Wales

Chris Ruane: To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, pursuant to the Answer of 4 April 2019 to Question 239184 on 4 April on Stronger Towns Fund: Wales, on what date he held those meetings; and if he will publish the attendees at those meetings.

Alun Cairns: I have recently discussed the Stronger Towns Fund on several occasions with Cabinet colleagues in different forums.

Scotland Office

Private Sector: Scotland

Hugh Gaffney: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what assessment he has made of the effect of the UK leaving the EU on Scotland's private sector activity.

David Mundell: Our deal is the best deal available for jobs and our economy that allows us to honour the referendum and realise the opportunities of Brexit. In November the Government delivered on its commitment to provide appropriate analysis to Parliament with a robust, objective assessment of how exiting the EU may affect the economy of the UK, sectors, nations and regions in the long run.

Scotland Office: Disclosure of Information

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how many non-disclosure agreements his Department has entered into with departmental staff in each of the last five years.

David Mundell: The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland has not entered into any non-disclosure agreement with staff in any of the last five years.

Cabinet Office

Cybercrime

Henry Smith: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what the timeframe is for the Technology Products 3 framework to be available for private sector cyber security companies to bid for government contracts.

Oliver Dowden: The Crown Commercial Service intends to publish the OJEU notice for the TechnologyProducts and Associated Services framework agreement (the successor to TechnologyProducts 2) later this month.Further information about the procurement process and associated documentation can befound at the following link: https://www.crowncommercial.gov.uk/agreements/RM6068.Cyber security services will not be provided through the Technology Products andAssociated Services framework agreement, but these services are already providedthrough another CCS framework agreement, Cyber Security Services 2

Public Sector: Procurement

Jo Platt: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 3 April 2019 to Question 238681 on Public Sector: Procurement, how many public sector buyers do not utilise the Digital Marketplace.

Oliver Dowden: A list of public sector customers who have bought services through the Digital Marketplace is publicly available and can be viewed at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/digital-marketplace-sales#g-cloud-sales

Royal Mail: Pensions

John Spellar: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what assessment he has made of Capita's performance in  administering the Royal Mail Pension Scheme.

Oliver Dowden: Following the transition of services from Royal Mail Group to Capita in October 2017, Capita’s performance fell short of expected levels. However, due to the close monitoring that has been in place through the governance arrangements, Capita’s performance has improved and is now operating closer to the contracted levels. There is a robust governance framework in place that provides Cabinet Office with the relevant oversight to manage the contract. This framework enables Cabinet Office to monitor performance and continuous improvement but also provides an escalation route for any issues that may be encountered throughout the term of the contract. The Governance model includes an advisory board, called the Royal Mail Pension Scheme Governance Group, which is made up of representatives from stakeholders of the scheme including Union (on behalf of members), employer and Pensioner representatives

European Parliament: Elections

Priti Patel: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what  estimate he has made of the cost to the public purse of holding elections to the European Parliament in May 2019.

Chloe Smith: The Government has made it clear that the UK intends to leave the EU with a deal and not take part in the European Parliamentary Elections (EPE) in May if possible, however, all the necessary preparations will be made for the election to take place on 23 May.As is normal practice, the Cabinet Office is currently in the process of finalising cost estimates and these will be published in the relevant Charges Order in due course.

European Parliament: Elections

Priti Patel: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many polling stations based in schools will be used in the event that elections to the European Parliament are held in May 2019 in each local authority area; how many of those schools will have to close on polling day; and how may pupils will be affected by each school closure.

Chloe Smith: The Government does not hold information on which schools will be used as pollingstations for the potential European elections. Local authorities are responsible fordesignating which buildings are used as polling places within their area.

Vote Leave: Election Offences

Stewart Malcolm McDonald: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the conclusions of the Electoral Commission's report into the activities of Vote Leave and the alleged fraud committed during the EU referendum in 2016.

Chloe Smith: The Electoral Commission is the independent regulatory body responsible for ensuring that elections and referendums are run effectively and in accordance with the law. Where it has reason to believe that electoral law has been breached it has the power to investigate, impose sanctions, or refer to the police. The Government has no involvement with Electoral Commission investigations. The Electoral Commission has produced recommendations on campaign finance which the Government is considering. These are not specific to individual cases but are about the wider system. The Article 50 notification will not be withdrawn. The Government is committed to finding a way to fulfil the democratic decision of the referendum, deliver Brexit and move our country forward.

Vote Leave: Election Offences

Stewart Malcolm McDonald: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what discussions he has had with the Electoral Commission since Vote Leave's decision to drop its appeal against electoral offences committed during the EU referendum in 2016.

Chloe Smith: The Electoral Commission is the independent regulatory body responsible for ensuring that elections and referendums are run effectively and in accordance with the law. Where it has reason to believe that electoral law has been breached it has the power to investigate, impose sanctions, or refer to the police. The Government has no involvement with Electoral Commission investigations. The Electoral Commission has produced recommendations on campaign finance which the Government is considering. These are not specific to individual cases but are about the wider system. The Article 50 notification will not be withdrawn. The Government is committed to finding a way to fulfil the democratic decision of the referendum, deliver Brexit and move our country forward.

Vote Leave: Election Offences

Stewart Malcolm McDonald: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether he has received representations from the Metropolitan Police in relation to its investigations into the alleged fraud committed by Vote Leave during the EU referendum in 2016.

Chloe Smith: The Electoral Commission is the independent regulatory body responsible for ensuring that elections and referendums are run effectively and in accordance with the law. Where it has reason to believe that electoral law has been breached it has the power to investigate, impose sanctions, or refer to the police. The Government has no involvement with Electoral Commission investigations. The Electoral Commission has produced recommendations on campaign finance which the Government is considering. These are not specific to individual cases but are about the wider system. The Article 50 notification will not be withdrawn. The Government is committed to finding a way to fulfil the democratic decision of the referendum, deliver Brexit and move our country forward.

Vote Leave: Election Offences

Stewart Malcolm McDonald: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, if he will make it Government policy to revoke Article 50 as a result of (a) the recent report of the Electoral Commission into the activities of Vote Leave, and (b) Vote Leave's decision to drop its appeal against alleged fraud committed during the EU referendum in 2016.

Chloe Smith: The consultation Protecting the Debate: Intimidation, Influence and Information was launched lastyear. We are currently reviewing the responses and we will issue a response in due course.

Vote Leave: Election Offences

Stewart Malcolm McDonald: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what discussions he has had with his European counterparts on the (a) recent report of the Electoral Commission into the activities of Vote Leave and (ii) alleged fraud committed by Vote Leave during the 2016 EU referendum.

Chloe Smith: The Electoral Commission is the independent regulatory body responsible for ensuring that elections and referendums are run effectively and in accordance with the law. Where it has reason to believe that electoral law has been breached it has the power to investigate, impose sanctions, or refer to the police. The Government has no involvement with Electoral Commission investigations. The Electoral Commission has produced recommendations on campaign finance which the Government is considering. These are not specific to individual cases but are about the wider system. The Article 50 notification will not be withdrawn. The Government is committed to finding a way to fulfil the democratic decision of the referendum, deliver Brexit and move our country forward.

Brexit: Referendums

Mark Menzies: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what estimate has been made of the potential cost to the public purse of holding a second EU referendum.

Chloe Smith: None. The Government has no plans to hold another referendum on EU membership. TheGovernment remains committed to delivering on the result of the 2016 EU referendum by leavingthe EU.

Elections

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what plans his Department has to publish a response to the consultation entitled Protecting the Debate: Intimidation, Influence and Information.

Chloe Smith: The consultation Protecting the Debate: Intimidation, Influence and Information was launched last year. We are currently reviewing the responses and we will issue a response in due course.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what progress his Department has made on increasing levels of voter registration for (a) young people, (b) home movers, (c) BME individuals, (d) people with long-standing conditions or disability, (e) victims of domestic abuse and (f) homeless individuals in the last 12 months.

Chloe Smith: Some headline registration statistics are collated and published annually by the Office forNational Statistics, including the numbers of people registering to vote anonymously. Thelatest bulletin is available at:www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/elections/electoralregistrationThe Government is committed to protecting, promoting and respecting our democracy. WePCT Checked PS Checked Spad Checked Ministerial Approvalwant to build upon recent record levels of electors registering to vote and participating inelections. One year on from the Democratic Engagement Plan the Government publishedits follow up report, Democratic Engagement: Respecting, Protecting and Promoting OurDemocracy, setting out progress in 2018 and priorities for 2019 and beyondThe UK Government will help equip councils and civil society groups to improvedemocratic engagement by sharing our knowledge and products, including our SuffrageCentenary 'Educate' projects for young people; insight and solutions to tackle barriers toelectoral registration for ethnic minorities and those who are homeless or move frequently;and by evaluating progress on student registration. We have introduced an ‘Easy Read’guide on the Register to Vote website homepage, produced in partnership with the RoyalMencap Society, to enable people with learning difficulties to apply online without difficulty.

Electoral Register

Chris Ruane: To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, which civil society organisations his Department has worked with on increasing levels of voter registration in each of the last three years.

Chloe Smith: Cabinet Office works with a wide range of civil society organisations to increase voterregistration and promote democratic participation. Over the last three years we havefunded activity by groups including Bite the Ballot, Operation Black Vote, Uprising, andMencapThe Government launched National Democracy Week (NDW) in July 2018, in partnershipwith the electoral community. Civil society organisations worked with others on the NDWCouncil to deliver more than 50 democratic engagement events. Details of participants are included in the report Respecting, Protecting and Promoting Our Democracy published inJanuary 2019.

Treasury

Gardens

Damien Moore: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many individual dwellings have gardens in each local authority in England and Wales according to valuation data held by the Valuation Office Agency in (a) absolute terms, (b) as a proportion of the total number of dwellings in that local authority and (c) as a proportion of dwellings for which recorded data is held on that indicator in that local authority.

Elizabeth Truss: The Valuation Office Agency (VOA) does not hold information on which domestic properties have gardens. While the VOA used to have value significant codes (VSCs) relating to gardens, this data is no longer collected. While the VOA holds some data on plot sizes for domestic properties, this data is not complete, as it is no longer routinely collected, and cannot be used to determine whether a property has a garden.

Sixth Form Education: Finance

Mr George Howarth: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Education on the adequacy of sixth-form funding.

Elizabeth Truss: Treasury Ministers regularly engage with Secretaries of State on all aspects of public spending, including Further Education funding. In line with the practice of successive administrations, details of ministerial discussions are not normally disclosed.

First Time Buyers

Mr Ranil Jayawardena: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what fiscal steps he is taking to help those who are ready to move on from their first property to move up the housing ladder.

Mel Stride: At Autumn Statement 2014 the government reformed SDLT on residential properties, cutting the tax for 98% of buyers who pay it, unless they are purchasing additional property. These changes benefit those who are moving up the housing ladder. However, the government’s priority remains helping first time buyers because this group are particularly cash constrained. So far, over 240,000 people have benefited from the Stamp Duty relief announced for first time buyers at Autumn Budget 2017. In all, the government are providing at least £44 billion in financial support for housing over a five-year period to help improve affordability and support homeownership.

Tax Avoidance

Kate Hoey: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what representations he has received from members of the public on the review of the Loan Charge.

Mel Stride: Disguised Remuneration (DR) schemes are contrived arrangements that pay loans in place of ordinary remuneration with the sole purpose of avoiding income tax and National Insurance contributions. The Government has received representations from members of the public including responses to the consultation on the loan charge, correspondence with ministers and submissions sent to inform the report required under Section 95 of the Finance Act 2019. Drawing on these representations, on 26 March 2019 the Government published a report setting out the rationale for introducing the DR loan charge and the impact on scheme users. Anyone who is worried about how the loan charge might affect them should get in touch with HM Revenue and Customs as soon as possible on 03000 534 226.

Treasury: Disclosure of Information

Dr Matthew Offord: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many non-disclosure agreements his Department has entered into with departmental staff in each of the last five years.

Robert Jenrick: Treasury has signed no non-disclosure agreements with employees in any of the last five years.

Revenue and Customs: Staff

Tom Brake: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, how many staff (a) are employed now at the new customs offices opened in RAF Akrotiri and RAF Larnaca in Cyprus, Portsmouth, Exeter Airport, Newhaven and Fishguard and (b) will be employed once fully operational; and how many of the staff (i) are newly recruited or redeployed and (ii) will be newly recruited or redeployed.

Mel Stride: HMRC has not opened any new offices in these locations, where existing estate is exclusively occupied by other government departments. HMRC attendance at these locations is decided on a risk basis.

Revenue and Customs: Fishguard

Tom Brake: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what the purpose is of the new UK customs post opened at Fishguard in relation to goods transported on the Rosslare-Fishguard ferry.

Mel Stride: HMRC has not opened a new customs post at the port of Fishguard.

Cash Dispensing: Rural Areas

Mr Gregory Campbell: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what steps is he taking to seek to  ensure that ATM operators maintain no charge access to machines in rural areas throughout the UK.

John Glen: The Government-established Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) is closely monitoring developments within ATM provision. The PSR regulates LINK, the scheme which runs the UK’s ATM network and has used its powers to hold LINK to account over LINK’s commitments to preserve the broad geographic spread of the ATM network. Additionally, LINK has put in place specific arrangements to protect free-to-use ATMs more than 1 kilometre away from the next nearest free-to-use ATM and has also enhanced its Financial Inclusion Programme, tripling the funding available to ATMs in the most deprived areas of the UK. LINK has also announced new additional premiums to safeguard the presence of free-to-use ATMs in remote and deprived areas.

Cash Dispensing: Fees and Charges

Layla Moran: To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment he has made of the effect of cash withdrawal fees on small businesses that host ATM machines.

John Glen: The Government-established Payment Systems Regulator (PSR) is closely monitoring developments within ATM provision. The PSR regulates LINK, the scheme which runs the UK’s ATM network and has used its powers to hold LINK to account over LINK’s commitments to preserve the broad geographic spread of the ATM network. LINK cancelled its third interchange fee reduction, due in January 2020, and put on hold its fourth reduction, due in January 2021, pending further review. The PSR welcomed these adjustments, having stated that LINK must carefully review its decisions on interchange fees to reflect changing market conditions.

Northern Ireland Office

Abortion: Northern Ireland

Stella Creasy: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, further to the Answer of 1 April 2019 to Question 237193, to what sections of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 that answer refers.

John Penrose: Amendments to section 71 of the Northern Ireland Act 1998 are planned in order to address the Northern Ireland Human Rights Commission’s ‘own motion’ legal standing to bring challenges under the Human Rights Act 1998.

Northern Ireland Assembly: Members

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, pursuant to the Answer of 9 April 2019 to Question 240973 on Northern Ireland Assembly: Members, if she will commit to making further reductions to MLA pay in the event that the Northern Ireland Executive has not been formed by the end of June 2019; and if she will make a statement.

Karen Bradley: Further to my answer of 9 April, I can confirm that the situation on MLA pay remains under constant review.

Northern Ireland Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme

Lady Hermon: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, pursuant to the Answer of 9 April 2019 to Question 240971 on Northern Ireland Renewable Heat Incentive Scheme, how many OFGEM staff are present in Northern Ireland on a full-time basis to administer the renewable heat incentive scheme on a day-to-day basis on behalf of the Department for the Economy; where the location of OFGEM's main office in Northern Ireland is; and if she will make a statement.

John Penrose: Northern Ireland OFGEM operations are managed from GB. Its head office address is as follows: 10 South ColonnadeCanary WharfLondonE14 4PUTel: 020 7901 7000 Specific queries in regards to Ofgem staffing should be directed to this address. Further details of the responsibilities of Ofgem in relation to the NI RHI Scheme can be found at the following link: https://www.economy-ni.gov.uk/sites/default/files/publications/economy/RHI-non-domestic-scheme-final-arrangements-DfE-with-GEMA.pdf

Domestic Visits: Northern Ireland

Kate Hoey: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, how many times has she stayed overnight in Northern Ireland in the last year.

Karen Bradley: Since I became Secretary of State in January 2018 I have made over 30 overnight stays in Northern Ireland. In addition, I have made 12 overseas visits in my capacity as Secretary of State for Northern Ireland.

Nationality: Northern Ireland

Paul Farrelly: To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what recent steps she has taken to reassure people in Northern Ireland that their Irish and EU citizenship rights are protected, in the event that the UK leaves the EU (a) with and (b) without a deal.

John Penrose: The Government remains committed to the Belfast Agreement and the rights it protects, including the birthright of people of Northern Ireland to identify themselves and be accepted as Irish or British or both, and the right to hold both British and Irish citizenship. Ensuring that the rights of all those in Northern Ireland continue to be protected after we leave the EU has been one of the UK’s key negotiating priorities. The Protocol to the Withdrawal Agreement delivers on a range of rights-related commitments. We are also committed to working with our EU partners to put in place arrangements that will allow Irish citizens resident in Northern Ireland to continue to have access to rights, opportunities and benefits that come with EU citizenship.